Still Life Tears On Canvas
by Sylvaene
Summary: Life at Lillian Girls' University takes a turn for the interesting when a girl named Tomiko first encounters the student Sei Satou. Mariasama ga Miteru fanfiction. Sei x OC.
1. Chapter 1

Still Life Tears On Canvas

Disclaimer: Marimite characters and places property of Oyuki Konno. All the other stuff is mine. I know it's a shameless self-insertion, but I have to do this somehow.

Chapter 1: The Circumstances Under Which We Met

_Tomiko _

Well, here I am.

The cherry blossoms seemed to wave me into Lillian Girls' University as I walked down the path to the main square. Today was opening ceremony for all levels in Lillian, and I passed by some highschoolers on the way to the university. Boy, do I ever feel relieved not to wear those uniforms. Thankfully, the administration seemed to realize that its college students' pure minds and bodies should be wrapped in something other than the dark uniforms, that their collars can afford to be untidy, and their skirts' pleats could afford to show. Unfortunately for me though, walking slowly is still preferred here. It kind of pisses me off. Haha.

Well, anyway, it's not like I came here primarily to socialize, so they can cast me out all they want. I just want in so I can get a degree in fine arts. That's it.

I wore my hair down today. I usually don't do that, but since I'd be spending a good part of my morning under the cherry blossoms, I kept wishing that my sort of untidy hair can catch some of the petals. Then I'd have an excuse to pick them off, stick them in my pocket and enjoy them in private without looking like a complete idiot. I really, really love the smell of cherry blossoms. If it weren't for them I'd hate spring completely.

There were already quite a few girls out on the square, and some of them were lining up to receive their Lillian pendants, which would supposedly symbolize their entrance into happy university life. I knew it was too early for me to receive my happy university life, since they were still on "e", and my last name starts with a "ha", so I made my way to the group of folding chairs at the back of the line.

I was about to sit down on of them when someone yelled a sharp "Matte, matte!"

I turned around to see a girl with ash brown hair and grey eyes looking at me. She grinned sheepishly when our eyes met. Another harufu.

"Hai?" I asked, cocking one eyebrow.

She stood up and casually put her hands behind her head. She looked like the type to play tricks. I could have sworn I saw her big bushy tail swishing about behind her.

"Ano sa… are you going to sit there?" she asked. Her hair was cut in a very mannish manner, and her bangs kept getting in her eyes as she squinted at me in the morning light.

DUH!

"We-ell… I was going to, but now I get the feeling that I shouldn't. Why do you ask, though?"

"Eh, ano, warii, I completely forgot myself and put my feet up on your chair," she replied. She would've been pretty if she weren't so gawky. "Here, let me clean it," she offered, hands poised to dust off the chair. I pulled out some tissues from my pocket and shoved them into her hands.

"You could at least use tissue," I said. Spring didn't exactly put me in a good mood and seeing this girl carelessly try to clean the chair was getting on my nerves. I felt my patience about to snap.

Harufu-girl grinned at me again and took to brushing off the chair. There were some huge clumps of wet soil on my seat, which would've soiled the jeans I was planning to wear for the week.

Amazed at the huge amount of soil on the soles of her boots, I asked, "Where exactly have you been? Did you plant in a field or something?" The last time I saw this much dirt was when my stepbrother trudged thru the garden just after it rained. My stepbrother is around ten years younger than me or this girl.

"I guess you could say that," she said, turning up to grin at me weirdly. She rubbed off the remaining mud with a flourish. "There, all done."

"Thanks," I said, sitting down. "You didn't have to go through all the trouble."

Surprisingly though, she winked at me as she did the same. "Anything to know a pretty lady's name. What is it? Mine's Sei. Satou Sei."

"Are you a—?" I stopped myself cold with a cough. "Harada Tomiko. It's nice to meet you, Satou-san. " I smiled. I guess I just _thought_ she hit on me.

"Wow. How do you write your name?" she asked.

I pulled out a piece of paper and wrote it down. "Here."

"Hmm," she murmured appraisingly. "This radical right above here, on _to _tells me your name's quite auspicious. Your parents must've been quite the conscientious feng shui believers."

Say WHAT?

"Er, I don't know about that, but it was my grandmother's name."

"I can do numerology readings too."

"Numerology?"

"You know, how numbers of your house, your phone, even your keitai can change the flow of chi in your life. Say, write down your keitai number and I'll do that."

I wrote down my mobile phone number on the paper. "Here."

She took it and stared at it for a few seconds. "E-tou…" she started, her brows furrowed in concentration. "Ah, well, your number was probably handpicked for you, then. You must have been destined to have it," she said, not taking her eyes off the piece of paper in her hand.

I raised an eyebrow. Did I mention I was a born skeptic?

"Heh? What made you say that?" I ask, peering over her shoulder.

"This number actually tells me that you are probably very smart, good-natured, naturally trustworthy person, albeit quite trusting yourself. You had better be careful," Sei warned.

That didn't even come close! The most annoying part was that she sounded so freaking sure she was right!

"Just exactly how do you know all this to be true?" I asked.

"Do you really want to know?" she asked, leaning in close. So close I could get a good whiff of her cologne. It might have been just my imagination, but I distinctly remember this scent from a new product promotion in the men's section at Lumines last week.

Sei grinned again, a grin that I've somehow come to despise. "We-ell… you _did_ trust me, a complete stranger, so much as to give me your name and mobile number."

She was RIGHT! How could I have been so darn STUPID?!

Sei was quick on the draw though. She easily evaded all my desperate attempts to snatch the piece of paper back and raised it way out of my reach, which was easy because she was about six inches taller than I was. This harufu apparently got the best of both worlds. I managed to get lucky, though. I grabbed at one end of the paper, tearing it clean down the middle.

I immediately tucked it into my chest and smiled at her smugly. "I don't think you'll be getting that from THERE any time soon," I gloated.

"Oh? Is that a challenge?" she mused, moving closer until her face was just a couple of inches away from mine. Her grey eyes bore so intensely into mine I couldn't take it. I turned my face away, shutting my eyes as tight as I can manage. I could feel her breath on my cheek, for crying out loud!

"Fortunately for me though, that isn't a problem," she whispered into my ear. She pulled away suddenly and pulled out a small black mobile phone. "I can have any girl's number I want anyway," she said with a grin.

That cockiness set my teeth on edge. Does she actually think she's _that_ attractive enough that she can get anyone to do her bidding? I was about to launch into a litany of what she should do with her small phone and her big mouth when I felt my own phone start to vibrate. Without looking at the number, I turned away, pulled it out of my pocket and answered.

"Hai, Harada desu."

"Ho, so polite! I like that duality in a woman," Sei's voice cracked like a whip in the earpiece. "I have sort of a crammer's brain, so I retain things pretty quickly. I could still reach into your shirt if you really wanted me to, though."

I glared at her over my shoulder and closed the phone with a sharp _clack_. I tried my best to hold her smug little gaze.

"If you think your little way of bullying me is going to get me for the rest of my college life, you have another thing coming," I said resolutely. "This went out with middle school."

"Oh no, no, no, koneko," she said placatingly. "This isn't bullying. I just want to be friends. There'd be no bullying, though a little dating every so often wouldn't hurt." She looked at me like a lecherous old crone. "Nope, not at all."

"Shut UP."

I turned around to face the stage, completely ignoring the sickeningly pleasant humming of the ashy-haired girl behind me. Or at least I was trying to.

Another girl had made her place in the seat on the seat next to me in the commotion, and she looked at me worriedly.

"You okay?" she asked. She had brown eyes, dark hair, and something told me she wasn't all Japanese. I smiled at her and nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks for asking," I replied. "Just the typical freshman butterflies."

She grinned. "Oh good. I thought Satou-san had really gotten to you. My name's Rizu," she continued, extending her hand.

I took it. "Tomiko. Nice to meet you," I said.

"What course are you taking?" Rizu asked.

"Fine Arts."

"U-so! Me too!"

Finally, someone who makes friends normally!

"Ja, let's have a great year," I said. "I hope we get to be classmates."

Then from the corner of my eye, I saw Sei stand up hurriedly with a sharp "Hai!" and walk out of the aisle. She stopped midway, looked sheepish and apologetic talking to someone over on the row beside ours and made her way back.

"Well, isn't that funny? Who knew someone named Katou Kei would attend this school?" she muttered under her breath.

"That's because someone needs to pay more attention to what was happening," I said loud enough for her to hear. "They're just on 'ka', you know," I said, looking over at her.

Sei leaned in. " I was so distracted by the beautiful barbarian girl in front of me that I lost all sense of time and comprehension," she said dreamily, tracing a finger over the apple of my cheek.

I caught her hand and put it down firmly. "Well, this barbarian girl thinks you should just shut up and wait for your turn. It's almost to 'sa'."

I turned to Rizu and grinned. As I expected, there was a lot of banter throughout the whole opening ceremony.

And that's how my uneasy friendship began.

_Sei _

I despise opening ceremonies. Actually, I despise any sort of ceremony whatsoever. You can get an idea of how self-important someone is by sitting through crap like this, you know. And this was stretching on and on. There were only two good things I could think of about being here at the moment, and those were 1) at least I wasn't in class, and 2) Harada Tomiko.

I was watching her talking to the girl next to her, Rizu, I think she was called, and I couldn't help but grin. Their conversation (yes, I was eavesdropping, bite me) was interesting, and involved some potshots and a lot of giggling at the silliness of other girls, their own little interests, the sakura blossoms, and repeated questions of when the ceremony would end. Ah, so I was not alone in that.

As they talked, I caught glimpses of Tomiko's profile. Damn, that girl was pretty. Physically, she was what most people here would call _different_. A half-breed, like me, with long, auburn hair, fair skin, and startling ice-blue eyes, eyes that would have struck me as cold because of their unusual coloring but then, by the time I managed to get her face-to-face with me I already had an idea of her personality.

But I guess I'm getting ahead of myself here. Barbarian girl's addled my brain, and now I can't think straight. Now there's a joke! Of course I can't think straight!

I'd been in a clearing in the 'woods' within Lillian University's walls (there's something about Lillian and trees, apparently), and I'd been doing some thinking. I had told Yumi that I'd start fresh in college, take things easy and just have fun. I'm not one to go back on what I said I'd do, but there was one thing that I simply had to get rid of if I really wanted a brand-new start.

With a stick, I opened up a small hole in the ground beneath a tree that stood rather apart from the others. Then, I took my rosary from highschool, not the one I'd given to Shimako but my own, and I laid it down there. There are too many memories to mention, but they all flooded my mind, some lingering more than others and a lot of those that lingered were memories I didn't want to deal with at the moment. It's a good thing I remembered my promise to Yumi at that point, and I stood up and filled in the grave. I patted it down and covered it up with some fallen leaves, small branches, and sakura blossoms. For a few moments I was lost in contemplation, and then all of THAT flew out the proverbial window when I caught sight of a girl walking down the path leading to the main square.

Well, of COURSE I would see a girl walking down to the main square. This is Lillian. There are OODLES of girls. But there was something about this girl—I don't know, maybe the way she carried herself—that called my attention. Before I knew it, I was following her at some distance, behind the trees. Like some stalker. I was both amused and disgusted with myself.

When I realized I was hard-pressed to keep up with the girl while keeping quiet and hidden behind the trees, I suddenly knew why she struck me as different from the others. She didn't walk slowly and gracefully, like most Lillian zombies. Not that she was striding manfully down to the square, but she wasn't dreamily floating around like an idiot on an imaginary cloud.

Then she stopped, her head turning in my direction. I had to keep as still and straight as a corpse stacked upright against a tree. My heart was actually skipping beats, and I was caught between feeling excited and scared. Some mature college student I was turning out to be. Holding my breath, I peered out cautiously.

The girl was bending down, standing over something that had obviously attracted her attention. She reached out a hand and made gentle, stroking motions. A while later, I heard a small meow, followed by contented purring.

Well, what do you know? She made friends with the cat.

Without even seeing it, I knew that the cat was the mountain cat I'd 'tamed' when I was still a highschool student next door. The cat never returned to the wild, it sort of just hung around and then crossed over eventually to Lillian U. I like to think that it followed me, but you never really knew with cats.

The girl's hair hung like a curtain over her face, catching the sunlight in an auburn mirror. After a moment, she stood up and walked on, and so I followed. I was beginning to warm up to this stranger, and I didn't even know her name.

I resolved to find out.

Digging around in the dirt proved to have been a move in my favor, as I later found out. I snuck out past the trees and made my way to the line-up of chairs. Mystery girl was looking for a seat to park her bum (which was pretty attractive, in my honest opinion), and so I waited…waited…

At the last possible moment, I hurriedly propped my feet up on the seat of a likely selection. If there's anything that worked in my favor at all, it'd have to be my luck. And luck would have it that the dirt from my boots came off in huge flakes and chunks on the seat, AND the girl was about to sit down on it, not having noticed me or what I was doing. She was either blind or as spaced out as some people I knew back in highschool. And so, at the last minute, I yelled out "Matte, matte!"

The girl started a bit, then turned around and looked right at me, and I swore for a moment that any charming greeting I had been thinking of saying died on the tip of my tongue. Her eyes were a startling, soul-knifing ice-blue. If it hadn't been for the fact that she'd shown kindness to an animal, I might've been a little frightened of those eyes, but instead of coldness, I saw only kindness—and mild confusion. That interesting mix of cool color and warm emotions swimming together in twin pools made me grin. The rest of her face wasn't bad either. She was definitely Eurasian, and it was a good mix.

I guess I should've said something, but I was getting a bit lost in those eyes, and I suppose time lagged a little too much, and before I knew it, the girl said "Hai?"

I stood up—maybe too quickly or eagerly—and asked her if she was going to sit there. A stupid question, part of my brain chided derisively. She answered that she'd been about to, but now got the feeling that she shouldn't. I explained apologetically about her seat, and we spent a few awkward moments trying to get it cleaned up. At least I was doing the wiping with some tissue she'd rather forcibly shoved into my hands. Our fingers made contact briefly, and I felt like a hapless little schoolboy who'd just managed to touch his first crush. What can I say? This girl was cute.

I introduced myself, slipping in a compliment in my own flirtatious fashion, and after an unfinished question she told me her name and smiled at me. That smile seemed to warm the air around me. She was sooooo pretty when she smiled. I gave myself a mental pat on the back for having excellent taste, and then thought that since I had her name, I might as well gain access to her address and number. That might prove to be a bit tougher; Miss Tomiko wasn't in the best of spirits, I could sense, and she might mistake me for a pervert. Which, of course, I am, but I didn't want her to know that just yet.

In retrospect, I think I may have gone a bit too far by tricking her into giving me her keitai number. She seemed pretty pissed off. And still her eyes gave off sparks instead of freezing into cold, hard agates. Flirting with her and teasing her had been fun, though. It looked like I was going to be able to relax and take it easy, just as I promised I would, if Tomiko would let me.

She did manage to get me back for all the teasing I put her through. At one point in the ceremony, I thought I heard my name being called out, and so I stood up and got all the way over to the aisle when I saw someone standing up and making her way to the center aisle as well. I frowned slightly, wondering if I'd somehow heard wrong.

The girl looked at me curiously. She had dark hair and glasses. "I'm sorry, I think I'm the one they called," she said as we met in the center aisle.

"Eh? Didn't they call out 'Satou Sei'?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "We're still on 'Ka'. My name is Katou Kei."

I resisted the urge to slap my forehead. I had been too busy ogling Tomiko that I hadn't paid any attention at all to the ceremony. The people up on stage were looking at us curiously, and I could tell they were getting impatient and wanted to speed things up. So I deliberately ignored them and grinned at the girl with glasses. "So, what course are you in?"

She smiled. "English Literature."

I pulled a Rizu and said "U-so! Me too!"

We both laughed. The girl then gave me a dry smile and said "Well, I'll see you around. Right now though, I have to receive my pendant, and you're slowing my happy college life down. Dewa, shitsurei." She bowed to me, then went on up to the stage.

I went back to my seat and a well-aimed jab from Tomiko. Ah, so she'd taken notice. She wasn't completely ignoring me after all. I smiled and used the opening to flirt with her again, and she matched wits with me by pointedly reminding me that I ought to shut up, sit down, and pay attention. I leaned back in my seat, content to watch her back as sakura petals sailed down to gently settle in her slightly-mussed hair.

A great way to start my new life.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Two To… You Know The Rest 

_Tomiko _

I was very happy when I learned that I'd be sharing most of my minors with Rizu, since she basically was into most of the stuff I liked, like photography and painting. She liked music that would hurt the typical Lillian girl's ears, and I guess I liked that part too.

What I didn't like, though, was that Sei Satou was in EACH AND EVERY ONE of my classes. Even phys ed. And this term it was dance. I didn't particularly care for dance to begin with, and could care even less for my 'assigned' dance partner. Every time I'd see her grin lecherously every time my teacher would start the tango music, I wanted to pull a judo takedown on her. She was a good dancer, though, and she'd take the lead and just smoothly sweep my feet into following the steps. Needless to say, the only comfort I could take in being dance partners with her was that I knew that if I just followed her lead, I'd pass phys ed this term.

There was actually this one time I thought I imagined her feeling me up, and I TOTALLY lost it. It was okay that she touched me during the dance thing, but if she thought that she could pat me on the bum when the song was done, she's got another thing coming. I grabbed her arm and pinched it. Sei flinched a bit.

"Ite-te-te-te-te… oi, what was that for?" she said, and her hurt eyes told me that I might have imagined the whole thing after all. I felt all the blood in my body rush to my head and I quickly apologized.

"Sumanai, but that was reflex. I thought you patted me on the bum. Gomen, gomen!" I said, flustered.

"Iie, iie," Sei replied, rubbing her sore arm lightly. "It's fine." Leaning in close as she always, she whispered in my ear, "I'd gladly brave any pinching if it means I can do it again."

AAAAARGH!!!

At lunchtime, I met up with Rizu at the milk hall. And for the record, they DO sell milk at the milk hall. Rizu had her head buried deep into a pocketbook, her ears isolated from the rest of humanity by good quality headphones. I could hear that new Fall Out Boy song blasting her eardrums into oblivion. I lifted one earpiece off her ear.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey," she said, not looking up from her book. "I have that new release. I'll transfer when we find a PC somewhere."

"Thanks," I smiled. "Can't wait."

I didn't really like _like _that band, but that song had such a catchy beat it was hard not to resist looking for it. I settled into the seat across her and got out my lunch and my sketchbook. I have nurtured a really bad habit of drawing while eating, and as with all bad habits, I find it difficult to break. Not that I tried, of course.

Rizu's eyes traveled from Terry Pratchett to my lunch.

"Mm. That looks really good," she said. Looking at me, she asked, "You actually take time to make lunch in the morning?"

"Kind of," I said sheepishly. "I'm kind of celebrating the fact that I can eat whatever the hell I want now since I'm dorming."

"That looks pretty good, though," Rizu said, running a careful eye over my food. I had made a simple omelette rice from my leftover mushroom rice this morning, chicken kara-age and a mini salad. "Not junky or anything." She looked at me suspiciously. "Are you sure you cooked this yourself just _this _morning?"

"Yeah, yeah," I said dismissively. "I know I don't look like I can cook, but I can."

"Ho? Then you'd make a good wife," someone cooed into my ear. I spun around, but of course who else would do THAT?

"What the hell was THAT supposed to mean?" I asked, matching her irritatingly cool gaze with one that meant business.

"Oh, nothing, really," Sei said, shrugging. "Though if you'd like for it to mean _something…_" She grinned at me again, that grin I've come to hate. "Oh, by the way, dance is up next. You ready?"

"If I said no would that make any difference? It'll still come anyway."

"_Are_? Is that dread I hear in my Tomiko-chan's voice?" Sei cooed again. I SO wanted to hit her. Before I could even move, though, she had picked out a piece of kara-age and was making a big show of savoring every morsel.

"HEY! Did you even wash your hands?" I protested, placing the bento way out of her reach.

"Ne, I was thinking," Sei mused, ignoring me completely, "I was watching this anime wherein a girl and a boy pilot had to live together for an episode to sync themselves with each other completely. Maybe we can---"

"NO! Definitely not!" I exclaimed. "I don't want to pass gym class THAT bad!"

"Ho? But won't they revoke your scholarship if you don't get at least 85 of your grade?" she said.

What the---? How the heck did SHE know?!

I suppose she read the surprise in my eyes then, because she said, "I read it off that bulletin board. You placed second in the entrance exams." Sei turned to Rizu. "And you," she grinned, "you were first. And to my knowledge, the top ten examinees get a scholarship." Turning back to me, she said, "Not to brag or anything, but I have grades to maintain too. So I'd like it a lot if we didn't screw up the tango so bad."

I started feeling a little bad then. I guess Sei had to maintain a certain grade point average too, and here I was being a tad selfish.

"Fine, fine," I said. "I'll cooperate with the _dancing_, but if you show up at my dorm carrying a suitcase and a pillow, expect to sleep in the corridor like a homeless person."

"Hai, hai, wakatta," Sei said. "Come to the classroom a bit early, I'd like to practice a bit more before people start piling in."

"Okay," I said. Sei smiled at me and Rizu and walked away.

Rizu smiled wryly at the departing figure. "She placed eighth in the entrance exams," she said simply.

I looked up from my om-rice. "Ah. Yappari," I said. "No wonder."

Rizu looked at me quizzically. "You don't really intend to be updated on Lillian's current events during your whole stay here, huh?"

"Not really," I said, absently poking at a piece of chicken. "I just want to concentrate on getting good grades. If anything about my grades has to involve socializing in parties or anything like that, I'll go, but nothing beyond that, I suppose. I don't intend to get into any organizations or anything."

"Well, I think a wrench has been thrown into your plans," Rizu said, putting the book down and picking at my salad. "You've made friends with the unstoppable Sei Satou."

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Have you known her from somewhere?"

"I was her classmate back in high school," Rizu said. "At first she was a bit of a lone wolf, but then in our third year, she loosened up, I suppose."

"So she went from lone wolf to amorous fox, eh?" I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, you could imagine that she goes for anything in a skirt," Rizu retorted, "but I've only ever seen her flirt with just _one _person at a time. The last time I checked, it was someone else's _petit soeur_ she was hugging, kissing and sexually harassing, and no one else."

"_Petit soeur?_" I asked her, only half-interested.

"It's this system of senpai-kouhai that they kind of started a long time ago," Rizu explained, only half-interested herself. "Never really cared for that kind of thing."

"Explain to me later," I said, picking up my things and standing up. "I have to change into PE togs and go."

"Okay," Rizu said, diving into her book again. "I'll see you in an hour."

I left her the remainder of my lunch and walked to the dance room.

_Sei_

Evil. That was what I was. I'd laid it on a bit thick back there, and a small part of me wondered if I'd just outdone myself. I really couldn't help it though. Tomiko was a bit like Yumi, in a way; but with one major difference. Yumi's entire face shows you what she's thinking, kind of like heaving a rock into a pool and watching the ripples. With Tomiko, it was just her eyes. Her face only moved if she allowed it to. For the most part, it did, whenever I was outrageously hitting on her, but with everyone else it was just her eyes. I wondered if that meant anything, and I also wondered if I wanted it to mean something, like I was the only one who got that kind of reaction.

The P.E. room was empty, which was exactly how I wanted it. I wanted Tomiko to myself before everyone else came along and turned what I'd be doing into PDA or something, but I did have another reason for wanting just me and her in that empty room, practicing our dance.

You'd think that by the way I went on and on about Tomiko's eyes I'd had lots of opportunities to look deeply into them, to see what really went on behind the ice-blue surface, but truthfully I'd never really been able to hold eye-to-eye contact with her for more than a few seconds. Just a few piddling seconds, and then she'd look away, look at anything except back at me. I wanted to know if she was just distracted or if she was watching the other students dance, to try and learn from them (because she was NOT a very good dancer. Every time my right foot went forward, hers would be there to meet it, never mind that it wasn't part of the dance. Ouch.)

I was sitting on a windowsill. Sitting on windowsills was my specialty. I wondered if it was purely out of the need to be rebellious that I started doing that. Ladies were supposed to sit on chairs and be all still and proper, not lounge about near windows and peer out at the rest of the world. If I ever met whoever came up with that ridiculous notion, I'd give him a good clout over the head. Yeah, it'd have to have been a guy.

After a while, I heard the sound of running footfalls in the hall outside. I couldn't help but grin. Who ELSE would run?

The sounds came to a skidding halt just outside the door (didn't that girl know it was BAD to run after eating a meal? You could get appendicitis, for crying out loud!) and I could hear some heavy panting. Then the door slid open, and Tomiko walked in.

"Okay, here I am," she said as soon as she saw me.

I gave her a winning grin (at least I hoped it was a winning grin and didn't have too much 'lecherous old man' written all over it). "What's this? Could it be that you ran all the way here, risking the inflammation of your appendix, just so you could make the most of our 'alone together' time? I'm flattered."

The earnest look in her eyes faded, replaced by irritation. "You wish." She put down her bag. "Can we just get started?"

Something told me that this was going to be a lot harder than I thought.

Tomiko definitely looked like she didn't want to be here. Her arms crossed over her chest in an almost defensive manner, and she looked at everything else but me. Maybe she was just playing hard to get, but my gut was telling me otherwise.

Still, I decided to go through with practicing. I walked over to the middle of the dance floor and waited for her to join me. When she didn't, I extended a hand. "Well, come over here, then. I can't dance with you if you're all the way over there, can I?"

Tomiko seemed to tense. I could sense it, the air was brittle with it. I was confident, though, that whatever worries she had about dancing, I'd be able to fix it.

After a moment, Tomiko let out a slow, deep breath, and then came over to me. She took my hand, and her eyes immediately dropped down to her toes.

"We don't even have music," she muttered.

I grinned though I knew she wouldn't see it. "We don't need music right now. You can count, can't you? One-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight…" A thought occurred to me, and on impulse I put one of her hands over my heart. "You could even count to this if you want."

She snatched her hand away as if I'd just held it over white-hot flame. This was bewildering. It was almost as if she couldn't _bear_ to be touched, or to touch anyone in return. "Fine, fine! You're leading, so you count it off."

So I did, and so we started dancing.

At least it had a _faint_ semblance of dancing. It felt like I was trying to wrestle with a robotic version of one of Madame Tussaud's wax figures. Tomiko's face was like a plaster mask; her lips were pressed tightly together, her shoulders were stiff and bunched up, and she still resolutely kept her eyes on her toes. Wild horses, apparently, wouldn't be enough to lift her head.

"Oi, oi…" I began, trying to get a reaction out of her. "The tango is a very sensual dance, you know. Do you know what it's for?"

She muttered something that sounded like "I don't really care but I'm sure you'll tell me anyway."

"Well, you see, sailors would dance the tango with…ah…ladies of a certain profession, and the lady gets to choose which one she'd…hmm…accommodate for the night. Do you get what I'm saying?"

Tomiko's eyes flashed up at me briefly. "Well, forgive me, but I'm not exactly in a very accommodating mood right now."

I grinned. She dropped her eyes to the floor again.

Throughout our practice, I'd entreat her to look up at me from time to time. She never would. It was almost time for our class to start, so I decided to be more direct.

"Tomiko," I began, my tone of voice serious. "Why _won't _you look me in the eye?"

She shook her head. "It's nothing. Go on."

I stopped in my tracks, which made her lose her balance a little, which _should_ have made her raise her head and _look_ at me inquiringly, but she didn't. She only recovered herself, her eyes refusing to make contact with mine. I tightened my grip on her hand a little. "This is important. How can we know how to trust each other when you won't look me in the eye?"

My voice sounded harsh. That surprised me. I wasn't usually this impatient, was I? Even if I were, I'd mask it with something, a joke, a light verbal jab…not this. I suppose it was this impatience that caused Tomiko to wince slightly, helplessly, and blurt out, "I don't know!"

Her voice was like a slap, it rang out a little too loudly in the stillness of the room. I stared at her, noting two pink spots on her cheeks that contrasted drastically with the rest of her face. She'd grown unusually pale.

And then I saw them. In her ice-blue eyes.

Tears.

I dropped my hands, relinquishing my hold on her, and stepped back. "That's enough for now," I said, keeping my tone neutral. I couldn't trust myself to adopt any other tone.

That was when she looked up, directly into my face, her eyes betraying worry. There were unspoken questions in the air between us, but before I could say or do anything, the hallway was suddenly filled with voices, and the doors to the room slid open. Our classmates began piling in, chattering like pigeons, their annoying little voices dispersing the silence, shattering it like glass. Tomiko hesitated, as if she wasn't sure what to do, move towards me or away from me. At the last moment, just as I was beginning to hope that we'd somehow formed some kind of bond in spite of what went on, she opted for the latter and lost herself among the other students. I stood there, alone, with some voice that sounded maddeningly like mine telling me that this was all my fault.

Well, shit.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Meet The Parents. One Of Them, At Least.

_Tomiko _

I suppose you could say that the rest of the class went on as normal. Normal, however, wasn't usually what I had in PE class. Sei and I just went through the motions of _seeming _to dance. I made sure I didn't step on her toes, and Sei just swung me through the whole thing. It was supposedly all I could ever hope for in a PE class—that _normalcy._ I was supposed to like it. Honestly though, I felt a little bad. I felt like I've managed to slap her—and myself—in the face. Funny how I got what I wished for, but absolutely _hated _it. I mentally kicked myself in the head for that whole excruciating hour and a half.

When the class ended, Sei surprisingly didn't hang around until everyone left. In fact, she was one of the first ones out the door. I found myself hurriedly picking up all my stuff and actually _chasing _her down the hall.

"Sei!" I called out. Then I realized that running and shouting weren't allowed, and well, they don't go well together anyway. I found myself short of breath and gasping for air as soon as I got to her. Oh, good Lord, why did I run?!

She turned around, her gym bag in hand, and eyed me warily. I hesitated. _Baka, _I told myself, _why'd you call her Sei? _

"Ah, ano, Satou-san," I started. There was a huge speck of dirt on my shoe. I used my other shoe to slough it off. "Saki ni gomen."

"Iya, daijoubu," she said. Her gym shoes were black and sleek, the kind used for badminton and volleyball. They were facing me now, and I shifted my gaze upward.

I tried to look up at her, to look at her eyes, but I found it to be too intense. I thought I saw a flash of hurt when I did _that _again, but how could I tell her?

More importantly, _what _do I tell her? It's not like it's something I can explain.

I felt frustration well up in me. I knew that I had to cooperate, I had to pass, and I had to help Sei. After all, she was on a scholarship too. I felt powerless, and I felt that I couldn't explain what I was feeling—or _avoiding—_to her, and it felt so frustrating. A dull heat was creeping behind my eyes, and I felt my cheeks starting to flush. I looked down again.

She playfully punched me in the arm. "Daijoubu tte," she said, grinning. "Ii yo. It's something you can't help, is it? Don't worry, I won't hit on you when we're dancing if it really makes you feel uncomfortable." She grinned even wider. "I can't guarantee that I won't hit on you at other times, though. Just when we're dancing," she continued, winking.

I can't explain it, but her words relieved me somehow, and now I found myself smiling. I summoned all my courage to look her in the eye even for just a second. "Baka no koto iu na," I said. "Don't say stupid things like that." Her eyes looked mischievous, but kind.

"Ano…" I started. "I think we should start practicing outside after class hours. That is, if you don't mind," I said. "We could practice in my dorm room."

Sei's face lit up. "Uwo… Is that a real invitation? Are you inviting me over for dancing, and maybe some dinner? Regularly?"

I made a face. "You make it sound like we're dating or something."

Her grin made her rain-colored eyes glimmer. "We COULD do that too, you know." She moved in closer again, and rubbed her cheek against mine. "We could actually skip the dinner and dancing and move on to the more, ah, _important_ things."

I pushed her face away. "I-ya-yo. Thanks, but no thanks. I have enough problems as it is. We _could_ have coffee, though," I said. I had a passion for all things coffee and even had a little siphon coffee maker in the dorm room, which was a graduation present.

"You just said the magic words," Sei said, taking my wrist and pulling me down the hall. "Ja, let's go to your dorm room and have some coffee?"

"Sure, sure. Let's go."

We were almost at my room when I saw someone very familiar waiting in the hall. She had bags and boxes of stuff at her feet, and when we moved closer, I wondered what she was doing here. The woman looked up at me.

"Tonko-chan, what took you so long? Didn't you get any of my messages? I was calling, why didn't you answer? That phone of yours is so useless," she chided.

"Hai, hello to you too, Mom," I said. I tried giving her a kiss on the cheek, but she immediately shoved her bags into my arms.

"Here, hold this. I brought you a lot of stuff, and you better help me carry all this in; don't just stand there staring at me."

I dropped my bag into the foyer and picked up her boxes.

"I'll get this one," Sei said, stooping over and picking up a particularly large box.

I turned to Mom. "Ah, Ma, by the way, this is my friend Sei."

Mom turned to her and smiled—no, beamed—from behind an armload of paper bags.

"Oh, it's very nice to meet you. My name's Naomi Callaghan-Ueda. I trust my Tonko-chan hasn't been a burden to you?"

"Iie, iie," Sei said, smiling at my mother. "I've been wondering where Tomiko got her good looks, and I'm glad I found out today." I started to think that Sei might have a separate sort of smile for situations like these, because looking at her now, you wouldn't think that she had been sexually harassing this woman's daughter a few minutes ago. She looked like a total angel.

"Thanks so much for taking care of her," my mom said, flashing a similar smile back. She had a separate smile for these situations too. I sometimes figure it amazing that she can shift moods to suit her purposes. Right now, I could tell she was being nice to Sei because of the "cool mom" effect she liked showing off to my friends. I could feel her sizing up Sei, and that somehow made me feel a little angry.

"Well, anyway, what brings you here, Mom?" I asked.

"Why are you asking me that kind of question?" Mom asked indignantly. "I'm still your mother, you know. I have every right to come here unannounced." She looked at the cans of stuff on my kitchen cupboard. "This is all wrong. Why do you have the all the cans on the left and the plastic-wrapped items on the right?"

I looked over her shoulder at my little pantry. What was wrong with that?

"Erm, I put the cans on the left side so that they'd have more space, that shelf's deeper."

Mom sniffed. "I suppose the chopping board being left out on the dish drainer overnight also has some explanation?"

"I used it this morning. I dry it during the day so that it won't go moldy when I put it in the dish rack," I explained, praying that the excessive amount of exasperation I felt wouldn't show in my voice. I was so _not_ ready for her right now.

"I can tell when a chopping block was left overnight, darling," my mom insisted. "It _is _my job, after all."

I felt my ears grow hot. I was getting a little impatient again, but I found myself powerless against my mother's microscope on my life. I don't really mind it that she still looked after me somewhat even if I'd gone to college, but well, 'mothering' and 'smothering' are only a letter away. I don't understand why she feels the need to be in control down to the last detail. And well, there are other things besides.

"Do you want coffee, Mom?" I asked, putting freshly ground coffee beans into the siphon top. I put enough water for three cups into the little bubble pot and turned on the fire. I wanted her to feel comfortable, even if she probably managed to find ten things wrong with my living quarters the minute she stepped in.

"Oh, no, no, no, dear," Mom said, making a face as if I had offered her rat piss instead. "I personally don't think coffee siphons do it very well. Why DID Teruko give you that anyway? She should've given you an espresso pot. Now THAT'S coffee, the way the Italianos would have wanted you to enjoy it, not some half-baked Japonico concoction in a beaker."

I detected around three insults in that one breath, and I desperately fought the urge to take the bubble pot and throw all the water in her face. Besides, I wouldn't risk Sei thinking that I might have some sort of temper issue. Not that I really minded. But she was still a guest, and I didn't appreciate it that Mom was acting all hissy with me in front of her. I was trying not to look in her general direction, but I knew somehow that she was trying to be very, very unobtrusive. I felt her eyes on me, though.

"Oh. Okay," I managed to blurt out politely.

"Besides," Mom said, putting her finishing 'touches' on my kitchen, "I left the motor running outside. I'm taking Ben to Hanadera for his interview."

"Ah. Please kiss him for me."

"The way little boys his age act now you'd think I was giving him the plague," Mom said. "_You_ try to kiss him when you come home for summer break."

"Hai." Guess there was no fighting city hall. Or mother hall, I thought with a mirthless smile.

"Any way, I'm off. You take care," Mom said, putting on her shoes in the foyer.

I ran after her, and all of a sudden, I felt five years old again, running after a rushing mother, eager for a goodbye kiss and hug before she left for work.

And like that five-year-old kid, the door closed before I could have gotten near her.

I stared at the door for what seemed forever, hoping to will it away. Even so, though, my mother would not be behind it.

* * *

_Sei _

I watched Tomiko's back as she stood there like a zombie, staring at the door, her shoulders slowly slumping as if her heart had fallen to her shoes, and for a moment I felt angry at the clothed whirlwind that was her mother who couldn't stop for just a few seconds to let her daughter give her a kiss. Tomiko had wanted to, I knew. It was in every look she sent her mother, hidden behind the irritation, the impatience, the soft, neutral, almost mumbling voice.

There was a feeling of heaviness in my chest. I'd only known this girl for just a short while, but my black, little heart was going out to her in a way I never thought possible. I wanted to reach out and hug her, assure her that I'd certainly stop for a kiss and a hug, but good Lord, she'd have even worse mommy issues if I started assuming that role, and I'm definitely not mama material. Besides, she'd think I was just using the situation to molest her again, and would probably kick me out of her dorm.

I didn't want that. Seeing all this happen suddenly shed light on everything going on pre-dance class. Tomiko had a hard time looking me in the eye because she simply couldn't. I imagined a five-year old Tomiko trying to defend herself from her mother's direct, perhaps slightly hostile look, imagined scenarios that were all overbearing, accusing eyes and ice-blue tears.

My hands were hurting, so I looked down and was mildly surprised to find that I was clenching my fists so hard the nails were digging into my palms. For a fleeting moment, Sachiko's face flashed into view, the current Rosa Chinensis, who was brought up to never question her elders, who never revealed her thoughts, and then I was strangely happy again because Tomiko wasn't quite that way, all seriousness and gloom and doom. I remembered how she reacted to my flirting, and somehow I _knew_ that there was a little spitfire in there somewhere, one that wouldn't go down without a fight.

Now, though, I was wondering what to say.

Hmm.

Crap.

"Hanadera, eh?" I said, meaning Ben, whoever he was. He was probably not in danger of getting the plague anytime soon. "Let's hope he doesn't get pulled into the Hanadera Closet by some rich, pompous, gay student council leader."

She didn't respond right away, but when she did, it was discouraging. "Uh-huh."

I'd never really fallen flat on my face before, but this was probably how it would feel. Tomiko was still staring at the door.

I took a step toward her and tapped her on the shoulder. "Come on, let's sort out your groceries and put 'em away. Then let's go out."

That seemed to shake her out of her stupor. She turned around, looking a little surprised. "I thought we'd have coffee here?"

I glanced at the siphon. After everything her mother had said, she wanted to drink the bad ju-ju coffee in a room that had just been saturated with bad ju-ju?

"I just remembered this café I wanted to go to, but had no one to share the experience with," I said, hoping I sounded casual and smooth enough. "It's not so late in the day; if we went there now I'd be able to get you back here in time for dinner. And dancing. We still have to practice, but I want that coffee first." I grinned, turning my gaze back to her and noticing that she immediately sent her eyes elsewhere.

How can I blame her now? It's really hard to look a steroid-pumped whirlwind in the eye, isn't it?

Tomiko must've muttered an assent, because she was already moving towards the groceries, taking them out of the paper bags and shoving some of them into their proper shelves. I was amazed when I looked at them, because they were all neatly organized. I couldn't imagine doing this for myself. She was perfectly fine doing things her own way, without her mother meddling.

In a few minutes, we were out of her door. Tomiko had changed into something casual, and she said that I should do the same, but I really didn't want to go all the way to my house just to look good. "I always look good, Tomiko, no matter what I wear," I told her, smirking.

She rolled her eyes and groaned. "God, you are SUCH an egotist."

"You should try it sometime. Love yourself. You'll feel hot and sexy and irresistible." I tipped her a wink. "Though I must admit, you're enough of hot and sexy and irresistible right now."

"Oh, shut up," she snorted, turning red. "Maybe you can enjoy deluding yourself, but I don't, so I'm not going to go down your dark path."

"You make me sound like a Sith Lord."

Tomiko's lips quirked into a small, lopsided smile, and she said, "More like a Sh—Lord."

Spitfire. I threw back my head and laughed.

I led the still-smirking Tomiko down to Lillian's parking lot. It was still early, so the place hadn't emptied out yet, but it was still easy to spot my car. Yellow's a color you can't exactly ignore, and I have the only Beetle. I went right up to it, then turned to Tomiko. I grinned at the look on her face. She'd gone quite wide-eyed.

"Uwo!" she exclaimed.

I straightened up, feeling unjustifiably proud. "Oho, you like it?"

"That has GOT to be the GAYEST car I've ever seen!"

My jaw fell. I could almost feel it smacking the pavement.

Tomiko looked at me and burst out laughing. "Just kidding! I like it."

I had a hard time recovering and comforted myself that at least she was happy again, even if it WAS at my expense.

We got into the car. I felt an evil sensation creeping up on me again. I glanced surreptitiously at Tomiko, who had just pulled on her seatbelt, and thought it was time for revenge. So I revved up the engine, shouted "BLAST OFF!" at the top of my lungs, and roared out of the parking lot. _Backwards_.

Tomiko screamed. Her hands reached out for anything she could grab onto, which was the Jesus handle above the door on her side and my shoulder, which was suddenly on fire due to five fingernail tips digging mercilessly into it. I wanted to laugh so bad, but I concentrated on driving in reverse until I got to one end of the street, and then I whipped the car around and zoomed us off in the opposite direction.

I tried to keep her entertained by quoting some lines from the Transporter movies I'd seen, but for some reason she didn't seem amused. "Stop this car!" she gasped out.

"What? Why?"

"So I can live!"

I laughed. "Don't be silly. I've never rammed into anything yet. Couple of close calls, but nothing bad happened." I looked over at her. "Wow, you're pretty white. And your eyes are a couple of inches out of your skull."

Tomiko shut them. "Keep your eyes on the road, BAKA!"

I was SO going to laugh myself silly later on. "Oh, RIGHT, I almost forgot about that."

"SATOU SEI!!!!"

"Hai, hai."

We got to the café in record time. Twelve minutes and eighteen seconds. Considering that the café was almost all the way across town, that was a pretty amazing feat, even for me. I climbed out and stretched, then smoothed down my P.E. shirt and waited for Tomiko to come out of the coma my driving had put her in.

After perhaps twenty seconds, she emerged, shaking like a leaf in a gale, her eyes clearly giving God or some Great Spirit thanks for her still being alive. She latched onto the roof of the car, taking in large quantities of air, and then she glared at me. "You should just quit school and get a job as a stunt driver in Hollywood. You'd make insane amounts of money and it would all be perfectly legal. PLUS, anyone with you would probably be a stunt person, too, and you wouldn't come THIS close—" she emphasized the word with her forefinger and thumb about half a centimeter apart "—to KILLING someone!"

I waved a hand dismissively. "Meh, you're still alive aren't you? Come on, let's go in."

Tomiko sniffed. "I can't believe you'd wave it off just like that."

We went in and were led immediately to an out-of-the-way spot by a window where the bright afternoon sun streamed in, filtering gently through translucent curtains. A waitress dropped by and handed us menus and we started looking through them. I already knew what I wanted, but I was curious to know what Tomiko's taste in coffee was.

I watched her from over the top of my menu. Her forehead was slightly creased as she went over the different selections. And then her eyes lit up.

"Doesn't this place have that insanely good bitter chocolate lava cake?"

"Oh, yeah," I said, remembering that cake. It was so good it ought to be sold in the black market as some kind of drug. "Would you like that?"

Tomiko kept her eyes on the menu, and I knew she was looking at the picture of the bitter chocolate lava cake. It was like the chocolate picture equivalent of sex. She suddenly shook her head. "Nah, spending that much on something like this is just too wasteful…"

The waitress came back. "Would you like to order now?" she asked us respectfully.

I ordered the cake in question. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that Tomiko was panicking. Did she have the Sachiko tendency to go into hysterics?? Good Lord. She didn't say anything, however. We ordered our drinks, and the waitress hurried off.

As soon as the girl was out of earshot, Tomiko leaned forward and hissed at me. "BAKA! Why'd you get ahead of me and order that?"

"Ii kara, ii kara," I said, waving it off. "It's okay. I invited you, so it's only natural that I pay, don't you think?"

"Iya, you don't really have to do that…" Tomiko fumbled around in her bag, which had an interesting design of little cartoon characters with tattoos, rock guitars, and surrounded by cute, cartoon-ish skulls. "Er…I can pay for it—"

"It's not a question of can or can't, Tomiko." I interrupted. "Just let me."

She protested a bit, looking a little confused about something for a moment, and then resolutely announced that she was paying for the coffee. I told her that if she was really going to be stubborn about it, then we could split the bill—sort of. She'd pay for her own coffee, but I'd handle mine and the cake to boot.

It was then that I noticed her shirt. I'd been having too much fun scaring the crap out of her during the drive, but now that we were sitting across from each other I had enough time and space to really look at her.

I'd never seen a shirt like that, not in any store near Lillian, heck, not even in the entire town. It was black, and had a sumi-e type print of a koi splashing out of some crimson sunset pool. The koi was pearlescent white, with a little inundation of an iridiscent blue. In short, it was a beautiful design. It wasn't quite sumi-e though…how should I put it? Guess it was sumi-e with an attitude. Like steel wrapped in satin. The shirt sort of matched her shoes, which were a pair of Vans with almost the same carp design, only Tomiko must have colored in the koi.

"Ano sa," I began, "did you make that?"

Tomiko looked at me, puzzled. "Make what?"

"That." I pointed at her shirt.

"Oh, this? Yeah." She wrinkled her nose. "You should've told me we were going to THIS café. I would've dressed up a bit better."

I laughed. "Don't be silly. I'm the one in a P.E. uniform."

We both laughed at that. I hoped she was finally able to relax. "Seriously, though," I continued, "that's a good shirt." I meant it.

Tomiko lowered her head a bit, looking sheepish. "Well, I was so excited about getting my first airbrush kit last year that I HAD to try it out immediately." She straightened up and pointed out some parts of the shirt to me. "See where the paint just runs and trickles? I still couldn't get the hang of the weight of the brush." She grinned and looked up at me. Right into my eyes.

Well, finally!

I grinned back and shrugged. "Mondai ja nai yo. It looks like a part of the design."

Tomiko sighed, settling her chin on her palm. "Well, I didn't want it to happen, really, so I guess you could call this a failed attempt." She smiled. "Ahehe."

She really _was_ cute, this girl.

The cake and coffee arrived just before the lull in conversation became awkward. I think I was just too taken by Tomiko's cuteness that I simply stopped talking. We tucked in, enjoying our orders for the rest of our stay there while talking about various matters. I can't say they were unimportant, because a lot of the little things about people are important.

Speaking of important things…

I noticed that Tomiko kept trying to look at me. She was still having a hard time meeting my gaze, but it was only whenever I _initiated_ it. Whenever she would talk about something that really interested her, she'd look me in the eye without much trouble. It was like she would forget about being shy and defensive and inadequate (the way she was around her mother) and just lose herself with you in that little world that she knows about—kind of like her taking you on a tour of a house she'd built herself, and with a lot of pride.

That place, wherever it was that she took me, felt warm.

I didn't want to leave it, so I took care not to stare at her so directly.

I couldn't quite bear it, though, so I said, "Na, Tomiko."

"Hm?" she said, raising her brows inquiringly and, yes, looking at me.

I slowly met her gaze. "You can trust me."

Tomiko blinked. She did NOT break the gaze, however. "Hah?"

"You can trust me," I repeated. "You can look at me if you like and I won't turn away from you. You can touch me and hold onto me, I won't try to break away from you or shrug it off or ignore you. If I'm going too fast, just tell me to slow down and wait for you, and I will. If you want to tell me anything, I'll be glad to listen." I looked at her as seriously as I dared. "I won't promise it because I know how easily promises can be broken, but I'll _say_ it. I won't turn you away."

Tomiko stared at me. She said nothing. The look on her face could only be interpreted as genuine surprise. Something went 'plop'; the piece of cake on her fork had slipped off and landed on the tablecloth, staining it, _but she kept her eyes locked onto mine._ There were questions, lots of questions, reflected in those blue depths, some of which I couldn't read because even as she looked directly at me, her eyes protected her and kept their meaning hidden. And now they traveled all over my face, probably trying to gauge if the chocolate had gone to my head. Something definitely had, but I doubted it was the chocolate.

"…Did you mean that?" she finally asked softly.

I nodded. "Hai."

She blinked again, her eyes still holding mine. Now I could see them clearing up, as if whatever shield that had been there was being slowly lowered and I was being invited into this girl's soul. "Why, though?"

So I gave her the answer from mine. "Because I want to be your friend."

A moment passed.

And then Tomiko smiled. It was her first real one, accompanied by a strange gentleness in her eyes, which now held mine like two good friends holding hands and taking a stroll somewhere. Just when I was starting to enjoy looking at that smile, it abruptly changed into a smirk and she said, "I don't know. You might regret that." She grinned.

I leaned back in my seat and chuckled. "Sou kamo shirenai, ne." (trans. "Maybe so.")

We shared another laugh. I sat up straight again and teased her about her hands, which had paint all over them, in purple, gold, and a smattering of blue, and she called me "Baka!" again, saying that as an art student she was bound to get paint all over her hands and shouldn't be blamed for it, to which I replied that if she was going to get paint on her anyway she should opt for body painting, and she said she wasn't interested in being the canvas for that sort of thing, and I said "Ah, zannen, I was interested in painting you," and then I felt someone's heel driving into my instep, which ended that little round of teasing. I grinned, then set to finishing my coffee. We still had to practice for dance class, but now I felt a little more confident that we would ace our finals with flying colors.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: It's Not Meddling, It's Called Setting Up

(_Author's Note: As to the Japanese that seems to pop up like mushrooms after rain, I'll put in translations. But those that aren't translated are repeated in English by the characters themselves. So just keep a sharp eye out. Sorry, but I guess it's the only way I can maintain the "familiarity" without it looking too annoying. On to the show!)_

_-Tomiko-_

"Heh? _Who _wants to be introduced to Rizu?"

"Kei yo, Kei," Sei replied, not looking up from _Blade Of The Immortal_. "Kei asked to be introduced to Rizu."

I stopped wiping the dishes dry and sat next to the bottomless blond pit sprawled on my dorm room floor. Sei stayed for dinner—_again—_and was taking up residence in my reading nook, bulldozing (as my mother liked calling it) through my novels and manga. My mom would call what I did bulldozing, but with Sei, there was the added bonus of having to clean up the stacks of books on the floor that seemed to magically grow with every passing hour she spent at my place. Not that there was much to do anywhere else, though. The rainy season had made the evenings dull and wet, drastically reducing the number of activities one could do outside. Especially if you lived a pedestrian lifestyle.

Which, of course, Sei didn't.

"Huh? Why?" I asked again, taking an old pile of books (it had been there for a day now) and placing them back on the shelves. Kei Katou shared some classes with me and Sei (which were, incidentally, all the classes I shared with Rizu), and well, she was two letters away from sharing more than just classes with the insufferable Sei Satou. Sei apparently encountered her again while helping one of her high school friends the other day, with her demanding from poor Kei the services of _her_ dorm room. Honestly.

Sei put down the book and gave me a lopsided smile. "Females." She put down the book and turned to face me full on. "Why do you think she wants to be introduced?" she said, inching closer. I inched away.

"Is she…?" I asked, not exactly trusting the naughty-little-boy look I saw in her grey eyes.

"… As gay as springtime?" Sei finished, crawling close enough that I could feel her body heat. She apparently—and scarily—had a _lot_ to go around. "Why, yes, my Tonko-neko."

WAY too much.

I scampered away from her as best I could, ending up on the other side of the room.

"Nandayo?" I gasped, trying to get as much oxygen into my lungs as humanly possible. "What the hell are you trying to do?!" Admittedly, having a tall blond _something _almost crawl all over you isn't exactly a very low-tension situation. "And what's up with that stupid nickname?"

Sei sat on her haunches, a smug little smile forming on her lips. "Hmm? You mean 'Tonko-neko'? Don't you think it fits?" she asked innocently. Annoyingly innocently. "Tonko's your childhood nickname, I assume, and you act like a cat. Hm, iya iya," she mused. "Nope, not _neko._ More kitten. Thus, _koneko,_" and like a little boy managing to explain Fermat's last theorem, she said with pride, "_Thus_, Tonko-neko."

I felt a slow burn creeping up on my cheeks. I cursed the high heavens for letting Sei hear my mother call me by my horrid nickname. I cursed them even more for letting her come up with that ridiculous formula. I stood up and resigned myself to just picking up the rest of the books.

"I suppose that even covering you in honey and tying you to an anthill won't stop you from using that nickname," I sighed.

Sei shook her head happily, opening yet another box of Pocky she had retrieved from my little box of snacks. "Don't think so, though covering _you_in chocolate sounds _infinitely_ better."

I grinned. "Tying a rope around you in a few weeks would prove to be difficult though, given how much and how often you eat here."

Surprisingly, _uncharacteristically,_ she looked up at me like a deer in headlights, patting around her middle as if for reassurance. It was over quickly, though. She pulled herself up and smoothed down the front of her shirt.

"Anyway, we're going off topic," she said. "Like I said, Kei wants to be introduced to Rizu. What do you think? Should we help?"

"I can mention three different things you just decided to ignore with _that _one statement," I retorted, smirking and looking her in the eye. "But okay, I'll play along." I made a grand show of 'agonizing', putting one hand over my forehead, another on my chest. "OH, what-EVER do we DO?"

I panicked slightly when Sei stood up in a flash and took the hand on my chest and placed it on her heart, and pulled me to herself in an even grander show. "We shall run AWAY together, to a place where NO ONE knows our names. We'll lead NEW lives, start AFRESH," she said, taking said hand and placing it gently on her cheek.

Well, no, it wasn't exactly because she was manhandling me or anything, I had actually gotten used to her doing that. It was more of because Rizu was standing in the doorway to my apartment, her face a mix of surprise and amusement. The three of us stood dumbly for a few seconds before I twisted myself out of Sei's grasp, flushed and totally embarrassed.

"Uh… Should I stay?" Rizu asked after a few seconds.

"Yes, yes, PLEASE stay!" I said, fending off Sei's hands. She liked giving Rizu the whole lights and sounds show of her molesting me, for some odd reason. Rizu magically manages to remain unflinchingly stoic every time, though, so it would suffice to say that Sei tries _harder_ every time. Wriggling out of a deathgrip glomp-hug combo, I put water in the siphon and turned on the fire. "I'm brewing that special mountain coffee you like so much."

"And you were just the person we needed to see," Sei added, grinning.

Rizu now (at least) looked a bit wary. "Hm. Why?" she asked, padding her way to a place at the low table. "I just came over to congratulate Tomiko—and well, you, Sei, since you're here—for finishing in the top five best dancers in your class. And well, maybe have some coffee and snacks," she admitted, taking Sei's Pocky box and pulling out five sticks at once. The tall blonde _fat_ something glared at Rizu and claimed back her box.

"Na, Rizu," Sei started, Pocky stick jiggling from her lower lip, "How do you feel about blind dating?"

Rizu looked at her incredulously, quickly recovering when I served the coffee. "Blind dating? What brought this on?" she asked. "When did you get into this kind of thing?"

Sei leaned on her elbow, knocking back her cup of coffee. "Not really into that kind of thing, but I was thinking that you should try it." She looked at me then, and I could almost swear that I saw her eyes send a little message of help my way. She definitely wasn't going to convince Rizu _that_ way.

I cleared my throat and said, "Well, what Sei's trying to get at is that someone wants to meet you. Not really a _date_ date, but it more of a 'formal' introduction." I felt my own bullcrap filling me up so fast my eyes were probably turning brown. "Well, that is, if it's okay with you."

I was hoping that Rizu's wordless stare into her cup meant any indication that she was mulling the date thing over. Finally, she said, "I think your coffee's turning a tad stale."

I almost fell off my seat. Kei would probably have to take it the hard way, poor thing.

Rizu put down her mug and stood up, taking a few more Pocky sticks from an annoyed (and greedy) Sei. She adjusted her pants waist and put on her slippers, and then stopped in the doorway.

"Ah!" she exclaimed, turning around. "What time did this person want to meet, and where?"

I was, in a word, surprised. Sei's mouth was slightly agape, so much so that I was afraid that her spirit might escape her body. One thing I had to say about her, though, was that Sei recovered VERY quickly. Fleeting as it was, though, that one look was something I'd remember with a big grin for the rest of my life.

"Ah," she said, putting her hands behind her head, "Sunday, at around eleven. Meet her at the Aloha Café at the Takashimaya."

Rizu grinned. "Ah, so it WAS a girl."

Duh, not like there were any _boys_ at the university.

She stole one more stick from Sei and was back in the doorway in a flash. "Alright, we'll se you there," she said mildly. And then the door closed.

I looked at Sei. She was grinning. I can almost see the wheels in her head turning.

Whether or not that can be a good thing for my friend eludes me.

_-Sei-_

Let's backtrack a bit, shall we?

This whole Kei-wants-to-meet-Rizu thing started maybe a few days ago, when Kei suddenly turned up at my desk in one of our classes together. I wasn't really surprised to see her; she'd helped me out when Yumi-chan, my darling little friend in high school, got soaked in the rain following some drama that had been going on with her and her Onee-sama. I'd forgotten her name, but now I knew who she was, so I grinned.

"Hai, Kei. What can I do you for?"

She smirked at me. "Nothing, Sei, you couldn't possibly afford me."

"Is that a challenge?"

Kei looked like she wanted to roll her eyes. "No, but if it's a challenge you want, I have something of the sort for you."

I put away one of Tomiko's manga, which I'd filched from her bookshelf. I'd been spending some time at her dorm (lots of time, actually, because it takes at least two hours for dinner, clean-up, and manga-bonding), and she had an unbelievable number of things to read. Heaven for the pig, the pig being me, thanks to Tomiko's cooking, which was just as unbelievable as the number of things she had to read.

"Okay," I said to Kei. "What's the challenge? Don't tell me you want to make a move on Yumi-chan. She's taken. Quite taken." _With her Onee-sama_, I added silently.

Kei pulled up a chair and sat down in front of me. "No, I'm not interested in your friend in THAT way…it's…a…" She stopped.

I blinked. Wow, was she actually blushing?

"It's…?" I prodded.

Kei cleared her throat. "I…I'd like to talk to your _other_ friend, actually."

_Tomiko?_ For some reason, I felt suddenly territorial. "Why?" I asked.

Something in the tone of my voice made Kei look right at me. "Oh…" she said, cryptically, before grinning. "No, no…I'm not interested in HER either. Rather, I'm interested in…" she stopped again.

The suspense was killing me. Well, maybe not the suspense. Just the curiosity. "Kei, spit it out. I can't hazard a guess, and if I did, it'd make you blush all the way to your toenails. What do you want?"

Kei lowered her eyes and mumbled something. I leaned forward. "What?"

"I want to talk to your friend about _hurr frrrnd._"

I took Tomiko's manga and gave her noggin a good tap. She flinched, one hand reaching to rub the offended spot, and I settled back with a lopsided grin. "I hope I fixed your speech impediment, because if I did that again you'd probably get amnesia. Katou Kei, what do you want?"

Kei took a deep breath. She'd turned pale, then red, and then pale again. I didn't really know her very well so I wondered if this was out-of-character for someone who seemed so composed.

"I want to talk to Tomiko-san about her friend."

Finally. I thought I'd have to shoot her in the knees just to get it out of her. "Ah, Rizu?"

Kei's eyes lit up. "Hai, that one. How did you know?"

I shrugged. "Who else could be so closely associated with her?"

"Gee, I don't know. You?"

I lifted a solitary brow. "You wouldn't be talking to me about it then, would you?" I lowered my voice conspiratorially. "Interested in her, are we?"

Kei folded her arms across her chest. "What's wrong with that?"

"Oh, nothing." I thought about it for a moment. Kei HAD done me a favor by taking both me and Yumi-chan in out of the rain and drying Yumi-chan off. I suppose I could help her.

"Let me talk to Tomiko," I told her, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm sure we can figure something out."

Kei seemed slightly worried. I must have had that devilish look in my eyes, because she said "What are you planning, Sei?"

I grinned, lifted a finger to my lips, and said "Secret."

_-Tomiko-_

I looked at my watch. It seemed everyone was late.

It was Sunday, the fateful day for Kei, I suppose, and because I had nothing to do, I got the _great_ idea of coming to the Aloha Café early. The sky looked kind of dark for a morning, so I had foregone staying in the al fresco section of the café. The Aloha Café was a relatively new _manga kissaten_ (_trans. Manga café_) on the top floor of the Takashimaya, one of the biggest department stores in town. It had always rained at night recently, but middays always seemed to be relatively sunny. The blustery winds tempted me to take an outside seat, but I declined its caresses. After all, if everyone started showing up and I looked like some ridiculous storybook witch with wild hair, I feared finding out what Sei would say to that.

I walked to a couch by the corner, cradling my cappuccino and a copy of _Lucky Star _ under my arm. I had barely set my cup on the table and cracked my volume open when I saw Sei walk into the store. I prayed that she wouldn't find me so soon in the morning, I tried to slouch into the cushions as much as I could, but unfortunately she grinned at me and made a beeline for the couch. She immediately grabbed me and squeezed, sinking both of us into the soft sofa.

"Hello, sweet," she said, nuzzling my cheek.

I started hitting her repeatedly with the manga. "Stop it, stop it! People are watching!"

"Hmm?" Sei regarded the people in the café with as much interest as she would take in an uncooked yam. "Let them. It's not like we'll see headlines in the newspaper about this tomorrow morning."

"It's not THAT!" I hissed, wriggling away from those grubby, grubby hands. "Have some decency!"

"Ho? I _am_ being decent," Sei said, finally settling into the couch and taking the manga from my hands. "I am merely protecting you from untoward advances by establishing my presence with you."

"That _is_ some twisted logic," I murmured. I made a move for the seat across the couch when Sei took my wrist and pulled me back down.

"Tch, tch, okay, okay," she said, smiling at me soothingly—at least _her_idea of soothingly—while she took a drink out of my cup. "Fine, I won't cause any more damage to your reputation today. It _is _Kei's day today, after all, and I need you to help me help _her._"

I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Isn't this meddling?' I asked.

She wagged a finger at me. "No, no, no, my dear Tonkoneko. This isn't meddling, this is called _setting up_. We just provide them with the occasion. What _they _decide to do with the setup is their own doing."

"I don't know about that," I retorted. "Besides, I think you've damaged my reputation today well enough. I don't think I'll get hit on today."

"O? Why, were you really expecting to meet people today?" Sei asked, actually looking amused. "But I thought you were going to be faithful to me?"

"Yakamashii." (_trans. "shut the hell up."_)

Sei ordered a strong blend from the waitress who approached us (she liked her coffee strong, with just a little sugar and milk), and turned to me. "I passed by your dorm on the way here," she said, managing to look like a little hurt puppy. "You had already left, the girl who lived next door said. I wanted to have breakfast."

Not looking up from my book, I replied, "Sorry, but I don't really like being late for things like these. And besides," I continued, flipping a page, "the main reason I left early was that I could have some peace and quiet. It's Sunday, for crying out loud."

Sei pouted. "Ho? I can give you peace and quiet, see?" She pulled me to herself and put both arms around me. "I can stay like this the whole day and not say a word, or put a toe out of line." I could feel her murmuring into my right shoulder, her eyes peering at the comic I was reading.

I felt a caustic protest bubbling in my throat, but when I opened my mouth to verbalize, a small yelp came out instead. Why were my cheeks flaring, and my heart beating so damn fast? I wanted to tell her to quit playing her stupid flirting games with me, but for some odd reason, being like this with her felt… how should I put it?

It felt okay.

But I had to retort somehow.

I shifted away—just a little, without breaking away.

"Dochi de mo ii," I said. "Do what you like."

Flipping a page of the manga, I realized that I was probably in the same situation as one of the girls in it. Her name was Kagami, and her friend Konata (around whom the story revolves) always drives her up the wall with anime references to no end; and sexually harasses her on occasion. With Sei, the frequency of the anime references and the sexual harassment were reversed, though.

I wondered if that was a good thing for me.

I had gotten a little ways into the manga when Sei murmured into my shoulder again.

"Ne, Tonkoneko, have you ever been in any of those situations in the manga? Like, say, getting swept up in a crowd at a comic convention, working at a cosplay café, those things?"

"Hah?! Real-life experience? With _Lucky Star_?!" I resisted the urge to guffaw.

Sei shrugged, not letting go. "It's possible, right, if it's loosely based on real-life experiences…"

I rolled my eyes. "Only if you spent every day with an otaku."

Sei squeezed me teasingly. "Ho? So Tonkoneko didn't have any otaku friends in high school? Maybe you're the otaku or something, what with all that manga."

I smirked. "Maybe, but I don't play any dating sims or anything. I think I'm more like her." I pointed to Hiyori, a girl in glasses, the doujin artist.

Sei squinted over my shoulder at Hiyori, who was now going postal over losing her mechanical pencil. "What's she like?"

I smiled. "She's a doujinshi artist. She obsesses over perfecting her technique. And it's not always exactly a good thing." Visions of old high school memories clouded my head unexpectedly, and I brushed them away with a flip of the page. "I was one in high school. It was mostly stuff for Otome Road." (_trans. note: Otome Road is where yaoi and yuri fanatics—mostly girls—get their doujinshi, or fan art fix. Lots of stores there that sell them_.)

Sei's eyes lit up, and it contrasted the overcast dark grey sky outside. "Uwo, you made manga? I'd love to see 'em! Tonkoneko, misete kure yo! Show me!" she exclaimed, nuzzling my cheek.

I wriggled away. THAT was too much to take. The rain must be making me feel very weird. "ONLY if you can find them," I replied, sticking my tongue out at her.

Sei grinned at me evilly, which made me retract my tongue quickly. "Sou? Sou desu ka? Is that so?" she said, drawing herself up and taking me with her. "I guess that's a challenge, then." I thought to myself that if Sei ever showed any enthusiasm like _this_ at school, she'd probably be Student Council President by now.

"Deal," I said.

I made a mental note to hide them somewhere she _definitely _would not find them.

Satisfied with her new little game, Sei settled into my shoulder once more.

_-Sei-_

Being this close to Tomiko was both a good and a bad thing. It was good because it felt good. Yumi was the only one I really cuddled (read: sexually harass) in high school, and that was, for the most part, just to get a reaction out of her and her Onee-sama, but with Tomiko it was starting to feel like I was doing it for self-gratification. It simply felt nice. Like it was the most natural thing in the world. Or maybe eating too much Pocky from Tomiko's stock really DID addle my brain.

The bad thing was, I got a bit too lost in that warm cuddle and that outrageous manga Lucky Star that I didn't notice how much time had passed. I heard Tomiko's stomach suddenly give up a rather vicious growl, and that was when I checked my watch and saw that…

Wow. Rizu and Kei were THREE hours late.

I gave Tomiko's shoulder a little nudge with my nose. "Say, Tomiko, you know what?"

She didn't take her eyes off her manga. "Hm?"

"Rizu and Kei are LATE."

Tomiko's head snapped up. Her eyes located the wall clock and subsequently went wide with alarm. "You're right, they ARE."

"Yeah, and I'm hungry." I actually was, because I hadn't had breakfast. "Aren't you? I heard your stomach go "GRAOORRR!" just a few seconds ago."

Tomiko looked contrite. "I'm so sorry…I got so absorbed with this manga, I completely lost track of time."

I grinned. "Don't mind, don't mind," I said, waving a hand dismissively. I guess you should call Rizu, find out where she is."

Tomiko shrugged her way out of my hold on her and took out her cellphone. After finding Rizu on her list of contacts, she called and held the phone up to her ear.

Five minutes passed.

"She isn't answering!" Tomiko put down her phone and looked at me. Her eyes were wide. "What could have happened? Where could she be?"

If I were an anime character, I would have 'sweatdropped'. Tomiko really did have the Sachiko tendency to go into hysterics at times. "Take it easy, Tonkoneko. It's not like Rizu can't take care of herself, you know."

"Well, yeah, but..." she snapped her fingers. "Call Kei? Maybe it's easier to get in touch with her."

Between the two of them, yeah, Kei would have been the one more likely to pay attention to her cellphone. But there was one problem.

"Ah…well…as to that…" I scratched at my cheek. "I can't."

Tomiko's voice rose up a notch. "What? Why?"

I grinned sheepishly. "Because I don't have her number."

Tomiko stared at me incredulously for a minute. "You're telling me that you didn't bother to get her number even though you KNEW we were meeting up today??"

"Ah…hai. Warii!" (trans. "My bad!")

"Yes, it IS your BAD! Sei! What was all that talk about today being Kei's day and setting up the stage and—"

"Well, we DID set up the stage, Tonkoneko, and set it up pretty well. Unfortunately, the actors decided not to show up."

Tomiko half-rose from the couch. "Let's go back to the dorm!"

I grabbed her by the waistline of her pants and yanked her back down, then secured her in place with an arm around her shoulders. "Calm down, Tonkoneko, you'll get a heart attack. If you go into hysterics like that, you'll faint. Let's order something and wait a bit more."

"They're three hours past the time we set for our meeting! How much more do we wait?"

I pretended to think about that one. "You might be right, koneko-chan, but if we go back to your dorm, what then? We probably won't find them there either. There's really no help for it, you know."

"Still," Tomiko began, getting up again. "I really think we ought to go look for them."

That was when it happened. Lightly at first, and then coming down like buckets in just a matter of seconds, the rain fell from the dark sky, obfuscating the world outside.

Tomiko groaned. "Uso da ne? (lit. translation: "It's a lie, isn't it?") This isn't happening, right?"

"Sorry, Tonkoneko. It looks like things aren't going in your favor today."

She had both hands on either side of her head. "And I completely forgot to bring an umbrella! Did you bring your car?"

I shook my head. "I thought it'd be easier to just walk it. I didn't think it'd rain so early."

Tomiko groaned again. "Oh, this is just perfect."

Indeed. Serendipity had its moments.

"Sit down, Tomiko. We can't go anywhere in this weather. Let's order something. I'm sure you know what's good here, you being such a foodie and all that."

She sniffed. "As a matter of fact, I do know, but—"

"Ja, order something for both of us. Rizu and Kei will probably show up soon. Don't worry about them. They're big girls, I doubt either one got kidnapped or anything stupid like that. Hora, there goes your stomach again. Go on and order something."

She probably WAS hungry, because she settled down—a bit reluctantly—and took up the menu that was lying off to one side and started going through it. I picked up the Lucky Star manga and made a show of reading it intently just to set her mind at ease. Honestly, this girl was going to lose her head if she kept worrying like that. It occurred to me then that I was going to have to distract her, even if it meant using underhanded tactics.

Well, that wouldn't be too hard. We WERE in a manga café, after all, weren't we?

I hoped I wasn't grinning TOO widely.

At that point, a waitress came by and asked us if we would like to order anything. Tomiko was still in the process of choosing, but I told the waitress to…ah…wait…and then told Tomiko I'd be right back.

I zipped off and picked up every interesting-looking manga and light novel I could find, then came back. Fortunately, Tomiko was still there and hadn't snuck off to look for Rizu or Kei. She seemed anxious though. As I approached, she looked up at me, and then at the stack of manga and books I was carrying. "Nandayo sore?" (trans. "What on earth is that?")

I sat down. "Well, you got me started off on Lucky Star, so I thought I'd look for some other things we might be interested in. I might even find some ideas I can use in my writing, who knows?"

Tomiko blinked. "Ah…you were writing something?"

I nodded. "For class. Some project the teacher saddled us with. I'm a little stumped right now, but since we're in a manga café and I'm with maybe one of the most creative minds I know, maybe I can change all that." I set all the stuff down and pushed several her way. "There, I thought you might like some of those."

Tomiko looked a bit surprised, but she turned and picked one up anyway. Her face immediately turned comical. "What the--? Bishoujo Senshi SailorMoon??" She started laughing. "Where did you pick this up? The classics section?"

"Oi, what's wrong with five or more girls in short skirts prancing around and whacking monsters?"

"Nothing, apparently, from your point-of-view. I don't really enjoy _shoujo_ manga." She put it down after another short fit of the giggles, then picked up another. "What's this? Ouran High Host Club? Sei, are you sure you aren't planning to go into the male escort business when you graduate?"

I laughed. "That'd be kind of hard, considering I don't have the proper equipment for it. What IS that all about, anyway? I just picked up random titles."

We started talking easily about the stuff I had brought back, going so far as to analyze characters and plots, comparing real life and real people to the ones drawn and written on paper, wondering why some were exaggerated and some were not, and generally having a good time. Tomiko grilled me about the story I was expected to write for class and helped me wring out a decent plot for it by crossing over an insane number of manga and anime titles. I noticed that she seemed genuinely interested in what I was doing, even though I barely introduced anything about myself into the conversation, and found myself wondering—maybe even wishing—that it meant something.

I didn't notice when, but when I lifted my head and looked out the window it was dark, and the rain had stopped. "Hey, look, it's finally cleared up."

Tomiko looked surprised, too. "_Are_? It's evening already? Have we really been here the whole day?"

"Rizu and Kei didn't show up either." I sighed, smiling in resignation. "Looks like we were the only ones on this double date, eh, Tonkoneko?"

Tomiko snorted. "It _isn't_ a double date. _We_ were only supposed to make sure those two met up and had a good time."

I lazily stretched out my arms over my head. "Well, I don't know about _those two_, but I certainly enjoyed myself." I looked over at her. "I hope you did, too."

Tomiko looked back at me, meeting my gaze. She smiled. "Come to think of it, yeah, I guess I did."

There was a moment of silence between us.

And then Tomiko's cellphone began ringing. She picked it up and flipped it open. "Hai? Oi, kora!" Her slightly irritated expression told me it was Rizu on the other line. I chuckled. Perfect timing, Rizu.

"I was so freaking worried!" Tomiko was saying. "Are you with Kei? Oh, this is her phone? You left yours at home?" She gave me an exasperated look. I gave her a resigned shrug in return. "Where are you guys? You went home?" Her eyes suddenly narrowed. "You were at the Aloha Café? _We_ were at the Aloha Café! We still are! We've been here the whole day!" And then her expression changed from exasperation to bewilderment. "Are? You were at the _second-floor_ Aloha Café?"

Tomiko sweat-dropped. I hung my head over the back of the couch and groaned. Yes, there WAS another Aloha Café on the second floor of this building. And no, I hadn't really specified which one we'd be going to.

"We're at the one on the roof deck. No, I guess we weren't specific about _which_ one. I just assumed that since this was newer, you'd think about this one." She sighed in resignation and smiled. "Guess you and Kei think alike, huh? Hai, just tell me all about it when I get home. Sei and I are about to leave. Ja."

She closed her phone and turned to face me. There was something about the look on her face that struck me as impossibly funny. She must have seen a similar expression on my face, because her lips started twitching. I gave in earlier and started laughing my ass off at how everything had turned out today, and Tomiko joined in immediately. A good number of people were looking at us like we were a couple of idiots, and heck, maybe we were. But we had both enjoyed ourselves today, and to me, that was all that mattered.

I stood up. "Sa, let's go."

Tomiko nodded.

We left the Aloha Café (one of them, anyway) and headed on to Tomiko's dorm. It was a damp, wet, soggy night, and the feel of rain was still heavy on the air, but I thought that today was one of the best days I had ever had.

_Chapter Epilogue_

_-Tomiko-_

I bid Sei goodbye at the dorm's gate. It was getting late, and she had a long ways to go. I climbed up the steps and headed for Rizu's apartment. I could still hear muffled voices and laughter, so I decided to skip knocking and headed to my room for a much-needed bath and rest.

The next day, I asked her what had happened, but I guess where Rizu's concerned, I shouldn't expect. Period.

_-Rizu-_

Us? We had fun.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Judas Game

_(Author's Note: In keeping with the Italian OVA, this is my version of Sei's side of the Italy trip. Please enjoy. )_

-_Sei-_

I woke up a few seconds before the alarm sounded. I usually despise alarm clocks, really, for obvious reasons. They're loud, annoying, and won't stop until you haul your lazy butt out of bed. Never mind that _that's_ its purpose.

Ah, but today was different. Today was _the_ day, the day of my trip to Italy along with most of my fellow English Literature students. Actually, if they were the only ones I was going on this trip with, I really couldn't have cared less—I'd been to Italy before, during my second year at Lillian High School—but this one had the added bonus of the entire Fine Arts people coming along with us. Which meant that Harada Tomiko would be there.

I could feel a big grin spreading over my face like bad acne. I sprung up out of bed and snatched up my phone, wondering if dear Tonko-neko would already be up and about and ready for the flight. Being the good friend that I was, I decided to give her a call, just in case.

It took a while before she answered, and when she did there was something _different_ about her voice. For a moment, all I could hear was muffled sounds and a faint grunt—like the sound you make when you stretch—and then she said, "Moshi moshi?" in a voice that sounded like melted butter—warm and thick. Considering she sounded a lot like startled-alley-cat whenever she was with me, this aspect of her was…_new_.

"Ah…Tomiko? It's me. Sei."

There was a soft yawn. "Sei…hayasugite yo (trans. "It's too early"). Don't you know what time it is?"

That _voice_. It was so…mellow. "Ah…" I cleared my throat. "Don't you know what DAY it is, Tonko-neko?"

"Mm…Yeah. We go to Italy, right?"

For some reason, it suddenly felt quite warm. Especially around my neck and ears. "Yep! Are you ready?"

"Hmm. Yeah. Packed last night. Sei…I want to sleep a bit more."

Tomiko was drawling nearly every word out in sweet slow motion. Was this smoky-voiced bed-bunny really the often high-strung spitfire I hung out with every day since the start of college?

My throat felt dry. "Ah…hrrm…all right, but I think you should start getting ready soon. Our flight leaves in just a few hours, and we have to get to the airport."

"Mm-kay. I'll see you later." I heard her stretching again, and then, unbelievably, a faint moan. "Getting up now."

Something happened to me then, and I knew I had to cut our talk short. "All right, later then. Ja, ne." And before I could hear anything else, I put down the phone.

And I proceeded to curse every god or higher being I knew.

Why, why, WHY, of all times, did I have to get a nosebleed NOW?

Several tissues and a cold shower later, I was at the airport, along with Kei and the other students from my course. I'd managed to somehow put the morning incident away in the back of my mind, but certain images still kept popping up, which was doing wonders for my concentration. If Kei hadn't been around to point out where we were to dump our luggage, I might have ended up spending the entire Italy trip in the clothes I was wearing and the spare ones I kept in my backpack. A part of me was saying that I shouldn't have called Tomiko so early, but then again the naughtier side of me was grinning from ear-to-ear.

At that moment, Kei made the mistake of saying, "Look, the Fine Arts students are over there," so I took that opportunity to sneak away from my group and search for Tomiko. I found her after a few minutes. She was asleep on one of the airport seats next to Rizu, who was predictably reading a book.

Rizu caught sight of my approach and put a finger to her lips, indicating that I shouldn't make a sound, in spite of the fact that the airport itself was fairly noisy. Everyone around us was excited about the trip. Most of them had never been out of the country before, heck, some of them hadn't even been outside of the city before, so they were pretty enthusiastic.

"Yo," I said quietly to Rizu. "So our darling Tonko-neko still can't get enough of her sleep, eh?"

Tomiko languidly opened one eye at the sound of my voice, regarded me the way a cat looked at something uninteresting, then closed her eye again and shifted in her seat, completely dismissing my presence. O-kaaay. She was SO not herself in the morning.

Rizu gave me a lopsided smile. "You'll have to forgive her. She's not exactly a morning person."

"Tell me about it," I said dryly. "I called her earlier and got the shock of my life. She sounded so…"

"Hot?" Rizu grinned.

"I was going to say 'different', but I guess 'hot' fits better. Yes, hot. Very."

Rizu closed her book and folded her hands on top of it. Uh-oh. Any time Rizu gives you her full attention is a time for worry. "I was there with her when you called, you know. Want me to tell you how she looked?"

I blinked. "Uh…"

This time Rizu's smile was positively beatific. "You should've seen the way she stretched. Slow, sensual, and graceful, like a cat. And the look on her face." The evil girl shook her head as if words weren't enough to describe it. "The way she sleeps isn't exactly ladylike, though. Her blanket was wrapped around her haphazardly, in bunches, and she looked like the kanji for 'Dai', what with her arms and legs splayed out like that. Not like the kanji for ' Chu'."_(note: 'Dai' (big) does look like a person with arms and legs somewhat outstretched, while ' Chu' (between/inside) is simply a rectangle with a line slashed down the middle)_

Rizu was looking up at me, watching my expression intently. I swallowed past the dryness in my mouth and pretended to be cool, even if it felt like the tropics. "I suppose she needed you to help her change out of her pajamas?"

"But she wasn't wearing pajamas."

Come again?

Rizu was smiling that horribly angelic smile again.

"Err…nightgown?"

"You won't _believe_," Rizu began, drawing out her words carefully and slowly, with proper enunciation and emphasis, "just how little clothes she has on when she sleeps. This morning she was in a tank top she must've had when she was tubbier. Did Kei tell you that Tomiko was a bit chub-chub in high school? They WERE from the same school."

This was new. "Ah…no, she didn't say anything about that—"

"Now that Tomiko's slimmed down, that old tank top's kind of loose. Actually, it was really loose." Rizu glanced sideways and up at me. I was pretty sure my ears were on fire. "It was _really_ loose, Sei."

I stared at her. For a moment, I couldn't find my voice. "I heard it the first time, Rizu. What—"

"It's a good thing Tomiko's a little over a cup C, otherwise her top wouldn't have fit at all."

Oh, my God. Did she just say what I thought she just said?

"Did you know that, by the way?" Rizu went on.

"Did I know what?"

"That Tomiko's a little over a C? It's amazing how she can hide them." Rizu purposely glanced at Tomiko's chest, which, of course, made me do the same. Now that Rizu'd pointed it out…Tomiko's chest _was_ a bit…generous.

I was starting to have palpitations at that point.

"Anyway, she was also just in her panties. They were white." Rizu was tapping her chin and looking up at the ceiling, as if she was really just remembering what Tomiko had on—what _little_ she had on, anyway—and was completely unaware of the effect her 'innocent' narration was having on me. "And then she stood up, faced me, and _stretched_ again." Rizu giggled.

Now I was hyperventilating. Do you have any idea how hard it is to pretend not to be hyperventilating?

I pushed my bangs out of my eyes and was mildly surprised to find that I was sweating. "Rizu…"

Rizu smiled impishly. "Here, Sei, have some tissue."

Goddamnit, not another nosebleed!

While I was trying to staunch the flow of blood (and rescue what little dignity I had left), Rizu smiled again and said, "Tomiko's really not herself in the morning. Did you know that she once made me breakfast _naked_?"

I bolted.

When I had successfully stopped the nosebleed, I made my way back to my group, which was just starting to line up for boarding. Kei was at the end of the line. She gave me a slightly worried look. "Where _were_ you? I thought you got lost or something. I even had you paged."

I waved a hand dismissively. "Used the toilet. Come on, let's get on board."

Kei and I were sitting somewhere in the middle of the plane, waiting for everyone to get on board and for the plane to take off. I couldn't take my mind off of the images Rizu's words conjured for me. If purgatory was someplace between heaven and hell, I was almost certain I was in it.

"Oi," Kei nudged me. "What's with you? You've been unusually quiet all this time. Normally you'd be flirting with the stewardesses by now."

I rubbed my temples. "It's not on my itinerary."

Kei frowned. "Are you sick? Do you have a fear of flying or something? You look a bit…flushed."

I decided to be honest for once. "It's just that Rizu's been painting a pretty picture of Tomiko in the morning, is all."

"Ah, that!" Kei suddenly turned red.

I looked at her. "What?"

She seemed embarrassed. "Well…Rizu asked me to go into Tomiko's room this morning to make sure she was really awake. Apparently Tomiko has a tendency to just fall right back asleep all the time. So I did. And…" she turned even redder.

I raised a solitary brow. "And…?"

Kei shook her head. "Tomiko looked at me, said "Good morning," and then proceeded to take off her top."

Oh, good God.

"I tell you, I ran out of there like a bunny with a fox on its tail." Kei grinned sheepishly. "I have to say, though, Tomiko's pretty curvaceous. I guess some of her baby fat stuck around in all the right places."

I was making odd, strangled noises in the back of my throat. Finally, I found someone luckier than I was. "Kei, you have no idea how much I want to kill you right now."

Kei held up both hands. "Oi, oi, I didn't look! At least, I didn't look when I realized what she was doing. I turned right around and ran. Rizu took one look at me and burst out laughing. Huh. Guess she knew what she was sending me in to."

Indeed, she did. She knew what she was sending _me_ into as well. I was SO going to get back at her for this.

"Did you know that Tomiko's a little over a cup C?" Kei asked.

I held my head in my hands. "Kei, please stop. I don't want to die of massive blood loss in the middle of a field trip. It's not a good way to go."

Kei laughed. "Sorry." She peered over the tops of the seats. "Do you know where those two are sitting?"

"Up a few seats ahead, left side, by a window," I replied without looking up.

"Ah." Kei sighed. "Well, at least it's just Rizu who has to deal with her every morning. They're roommates for the entire trip to Italy."

I slowly lifted my head. Something went 'Click!' in my brain.

"Say, Kei," I said, leaning back in my seat as the plane got ready for take off. "We're roommates for the entire trip, aren't we?"

She let out what sounded like a long-suffering sigh. "Hai."

"And Tomiko and Rizu are roommates for the entire trip, aren't they?"

Kei turned her head to look at me. "Hai…?" she answered uncertainly.

I smiled. It must have been scary, because Kei moved away from me a bit. "Wouldn't it be nice if, say, I could get Rizu to, hm, I don't know, maybe…switch places with me?"

Kei stared at me. "That would mean…" she started thoughtfully, "that you and Tomiko would be roommates, and Rizu and I would be roommates…"

I nodded. "For the _entire trip to Italy_."

Her jaw went slack. Only God knew what was going on in her head, but I could tell she liked my idea.

And then Kei recovered. "Well, that would be nice, Sei, but…how are you going to pull that off? Rizu might act the way she does, but she's very protective of Tomiko. She's not going to agree to your plan just like that."

I shrugged. "We're writers, Kei. Be creative. Think. All we really need is a weakness. So tell me, what's Rizu so fond of that she can't say no to it."

Kei's brows pulled together in a frown. "Well…she likes jidai geki (period films)."

"Not like we can find a film featuring Italian Samurai, now can we?"

"Sou ne? Hmm…" Kei thought about it some more, and then she snapped her fingers. "Chocolate. Rizu _loves_ chocolate. I seriously think she'd get drunk on it more than she'd get drunk on beer or any other alcoholic beverage."

I grinned. "Think she'd agree to switch places with me if we offered her a big box of genuine Italian chocolate?"

Kei's expression was priceless. "So…you're going to play the Judas game."

"Why not? Don't you want Rizu to be your roommate instead of little old me?"

She sighed again. "Believe me, I do. It feels like I've just made a deal with the devil, though." And then she grinned. "I do feel sorry for Tomiko."

I laughed. "Come on, it's not like I'm going to molest her."

"You wish, though, I'm sure."

"If she's _that_ agreeable in the morning, Kei, it won't be molesting."

She buried her face in her hand. "Oh, my God, Sei, you are impossible. So, when are you going to approach Rizu with this dastardly scheme? When Tomiko gets up to use the toilet?"

I leaned back and laced my fingers behind my head. "Nope, not on the plane. This sort of thing can't be rushed, but it does have to be timed _just right_. The minute we get off the plane, we'll set this plan in motion. Just follow my lead."

Kei looked a bit doubtful, but since she couldn't think of a better idea, she simply sighed yet again and nodded. I grinned, then settled in for the long flight.

I didn't really like long flights, but I was all right when we finally landed. The exhaustion would probably sink in later, and so would all the cramped muscles and aching joints, but at the moment I was pretty much pumped. I hadn't forgotten about my little plan.

Kei was tired, but snapped to attention when I nudged her arm. "What, are we doing it already?" she blurted out.

"That sounded really wrong, coming from you," I said, grinning. "Let's go. Operation Judas Game, start!"

We found the girls sitting near the baggage carts. Rizu was watching the conveyor belt go round, keeping an eye out for their luggage. Tomiko was groggily peering around at the airport. The little kitten had been asleep for most of the flight. The only time I saw her fully awake was during meals. And there was one time when she was awake for a couple of seconds, when Rizu woke her up to check if she was still alive.

Kei and I walked over to them. "Yo!" I greeted cheerfully, with matching wide grin. "How're you two holding up?"

Rizu held up a small V-sign. "I'm fine."

Tomiko rubbed at her face. "I guess I'm okay, too," she mumbled.

"Someone looks like she could use some coffee," I noted.

"I miss my siphon," Tomiko sighed.

I glanced at Kei and tipped her a wink. This was our pre-arranged signal. Kei looked like she wanted to roll her eyes, but she did her part. "Ah, Tomiko, is it all right if I asked you to come with me for a while?"

Both Rizu and Tomiko glanced up curiously. "Err…sure, but where are we going?" Tomiko asked.

Kei wasn't expecting that one. "Ah…well…I…"

"Her Italian isn't so good yet," I cut in smoothly, wrapping an arm around Tomiko's shoulders and lifting her to her feet. She protested with a yelp and a couple of swats at my head. "Be a darling and help Kei out, won't you?"

"Ha? Help her out with what?" Tomiko demanded.

I tilted my head slightly towards Rizu, who had gone back to watching the conveyor belt. Tomiko's ice-blue eyes widened. Understanding the situation, she nodded, and then she and Kei went off in the direction of the shops.

I plopped down next to Rizu. "All right," I said, "I'm going to get straight to the point here, Rizu."

Rizu blinked. "What are you up to, Sei?"

"I want you to switch rooms with me."

Rizu looked slightly surprised. "Oh, no way. I know how lecherous you can get. If I'm not always interrupting you and Tomiko, who knows what you'd do—"

"Ouch, you wound me, Rizu! That's all just clean, harmless fun. Besides, if we switch rooms, you get to be with Kei the entire Italian trip." I wriggled my eyebrows suggestively.

Rizu laughed. "Don't make me out to be like you! Besides, it sounds to me like Kei didn't exactly request this little switcheroo. Did she?"

"Does she have to? I know she'd like to spend time with you."

"Oh, please, Sei, you're not that altruistic."

"If I gave you my word that I would never molest Tomiko in the bedroom, would you switch?"

Rizu snorted. "What good would that do? You'd molest her everywhere else!"

Damn, she was sharp!

I sighed. "Shikata wa nai, ne? Guess there's no other way then…" I looked her straight in the eye. "All right. Would you trade rooms with me if Kei and I gave you a box of Valrhona? Or some Baci chocolates?"

Rizu froze. She slowly turned her head to face me, and I could almost swear she was shaking. "What?"

I grinned. "Bacis. You know…nice, loverly, little kisses of hazelnuts in hazelnut creme AND the best bittersweet. How does that sound?" I twirled a finger around in the air. "All yours just for a slight change in room plans. What do you say, Rizu-chan?"

Now it was Rizu's turn to sweat bullets. "You're asking me to sell out my friend for chocolates!" she gasped, anguished. "How could you?"

"You TORTURED me sixteen hours ago with images of same friend in little or no clothing!" I shot back. "Wasn't that already a sell-out? What would Tomiko say if she found out you told me EXACTLY what she'd been wearing that I spoke to her on the phone?"

Rizu didn't know which way to turn. She wrung her hands, then glared right at me. "If you do something, _anything_ that she doesn't like, Sei Satou, I will shove those chocolates down your throat and kick you out of that room. One toe out of line and the deal is off! Understand?"

I grinned triumphantly. Yes! "Deal." I held out a hand.

Rizu shook it reluctantly. "Oh, God, I've just made a deal with the devil."

"Not exactly, but you're close." I glanced over my shoulder in time to see Kei and Tomiko returning. Kei carried a paper bag in one hand.

Rizu was grumbling. "You've turned me into Judas. There had better be thirty pieces of chocolate in there, Sei Satou."

Turned out, there were sixty.

* * *

_-Tomiko-_

I had to admit, I was pretty much out of it at the airport on the day of the trip. Despite my enthusiasm about the whole thing (Rizu and I talked about it excitedly for weeks on end), my unholy love of sleep won out in the end. Mom's always maintained that I might be narcoleptic to some extent. She might be right.

I have a very, _very _fuzzy recollection of the flight itself, mostly Rizu shoving into my mouth what seemed to be a very shoddy rendition of fettucine alfredo, airline food-style. After that I didn't really want to _remember _anything about the flight. I do remember that Sei and Kei were doing a lot of seat-hopping, though.

When I really first came to in Rome, Sei had bodily taken me around the shoulders and set me to my feet to help Kei. If I were asked to recount anything that transpired during that walk around the airport shops, I could honestly say that I just remember being dragged by the arm by Kei, being nudged to say "Buon giorno" and "Grazie". I just hope I wasn't too rude. I think I slept through the hotel check-in too. One thing I could say about the hotel, though, was that they had _excellent_ lobby couches. So yes, it would suffice to say that I was virtually dead to the world for more than sixteen hours. I guess I really loved sleep.

In retrospect, it might have also been my key to disaster.

Rizu and I settled into our hotel room. It was nicely appointed, with the _softest_ beds imaginable. It need not be said that I sank into one of the side-by-side double beds and tucked in. I _was_ jetlagged, and we _did_ have four more hours until we started our first tour. I had the best sleep one could ever imagine after being crushed into an S-shape for sixteen hours.

Then, I was being poked.

In the cheek.

By someone.

Someone who smelled like that men's cologne I saw in Lumines.

". . . Tonkoneko? Okite yo." (trans. "Wake up.")

Suddenly, like a dead cat that got all its nine lives sucked back in like an airplane toilet, I was suddenly awake. WIDE awake.

The first thing I saw was the ceiling of the nicely-appointed room. The second thing I saw (when I turned) was Sei's face to my left, about an inch away from mine.

"GAH!" I yelped, bolting up and out of bed.

"Now you're awake," Sei said, smiling lopsidedly. Breaking into a grin, she continued, "I hate to wake my angelic Sleeping Beauty, but we have an hour until the bus leaves." She settled into the pillows, crossing her arms behind her head. "I already did what I had to do, so the bathroom's all yours."

I was, in a word, aghast.

"Y-y-y-y-y-YOU!" I barely peeped out the words. "Wha-wha-WHAT are you doing HERE?!" I gave the room a quick survey. "Where's Rizu?!"

"Rizu?" Sei asked as if I were daft to ask after _my _roommate. "Why, she's bunking with Kei."

"U-u-USOTSUKI!" (trans. "You LIE!") I whipped my head around, looking for signs of Rizu's stuff, which I saw her unpack.

Her million scrunchies on the dresser were gone.

There were Sei-sized-and-styled clothes in the hangers in the closet (and incidentally, some of my clothes were on some of the hangers.)

I pulled the nearest drawer open.

BOXERS?!

So she wasn't lying.

Shit.

She shook her head, stood up and walked around the bed towards me. "I'm afraid not, kitten. She wanted to spend more time with Kei, and thought this trip would be a good idea to do so." She smiled at me and put a finger under my chin. "We would have asked you if you were up for the idea, but I doubted even the King of Italy could wake you up. And then we tried." Her grinning face inched closer to mine. "Then he said that Italy's a democracy anyway, so we let you sleep, and you let us decide." She tilted my face towards hers. "You know what they say. When in Rome…"

"STOP STOP STOP!" I yelled, pushing her hands away from EVERYTHING, and catching my breath. "Okay, okay, I can accept that Rizu might want some alone time with Kei. But I DON'T want any alone time with you!"

"Aw, no?" Sei asked, pouting mockingly. "But I wanted to see Italy with you, Tonkoneko."

"You probably want to see London and France too!" I burst out.

"Okay, okay," she said, holding her hands up. "Don't freak. I _did_ promise Rizu I wouldn't molest you in the bedroom. So you have _Rizu's _word, not just mine." One of her grey eyes closed in a wink. "_Capisce?"_

I heaved a sigh. "Fine."

I had no idea I was digging an even _deeper_ hole for myself. I went into the bathroom and took a shower, making a big show of arming myself with my scrub-brush-on-a-stick. She had better not get any bright ideas.

My 'exciting' Italian trip was now starting out with this sentiment:

_ Mi sento male. (trans. "I feel sick.")_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Five: Thanks, I Guess

(Author's Note: Sorry this took so long, was out of commission for a few days. But here it is. Enjoy! )

-_Tomiko-_

Walking around the streets and noisy piazzas of Rome was a delight, I had to say. Vespas puttered noisily, plying one tiny cranny after another with logic-defying agility. Smells of cooking food descending from cramped apartments in villas permeated most of—well, _all—_of town. Vibrant displays of food and gifts glittered enticingly from under multi-colored awnings, and the whole city itself had a charm that you wouldn't quite get from just looking at pictures of it in a book. I found myself feeling slightly less irritated that I was seeing the wonders of Italy with a girl who acted mostly like a lecherous old man.

Quite honestly, I was starting to enjoy myself, and there was actually one time that I was _glad_ I was with her.

The streets of inner-city Rome are littered with enterprising artisans, trying to cut themselves a little piece of tourist euro. The _polizia _apparently turn a blind eye to these hawkers, probably because they don't want any wrinkles on their Armani uniforms chasing after them. But I digress. They do add a certain spice to the dish, if I may say so.

Anyway, Sei and I had some free time, so we went around with Rizu and Kei, going from one hawker to the next. They ran the gamut from selling blah souvenirs that just plain screamed 'tourist!', to little treasures from underappreciated masters. There was one such master on the street that day, an old man painting little vignettes of underwater life without using a single paintbrush. He was a fingerpaint master, turning the most elementary of skills into actual fine art. He used everything attached to his shoulders—his fingers for details, his palms for big sweeping washes of color, his forearms for certain textures reminiscent of fans of coral. He didn't quite limit himself to blue water, splashing pools orange, purple and gold. Needless to say, I was quite impressed, and quite glued to the sidewalk I was standing on.

He waxed poetic about this and that while he painted, putting on more of a show for his increasing number of patrons. From what I could understand of his heavily passionate Italian, he was sending out messages to us to live life and continue a craft that he spent fifty years nurturing. At the end of his wildly emotive demonstration, he invited everybody present to his studio. It would have ended there, but for some odd reason I seemed to have caught _his_eye. He came right up to me and looked me in the eye, and started speaking in his vivacious tone.

"You must come with me to my studio," he said melodiously, taking hold of my arm. His paint-stained fingers continuously stroked the back of my arm, and would not stop. "I am interested in painting your body."

I didn't quite know what to say. I was enamored with his work—I _definitely_would want to know how exactly I can do that for myself—but I _definitely_ didn't want to go ANYWHERE with him, either! I stood there with a weird look on my face, with him looking intently into my eyes, still stroking my arm.

I suddenly felt Sei muscle in and put an arm around both my shoulders, turning me in the opposite direction. I heard her rattle off endlessly in Japanese, and I saw that her face had a smile that I couldn't quite read. She was tense.

"Gomen, gomen, wakaranai, wakaranai! Nihonjin dakara!" (_trans_. "Sorry, sorry, we don't understand! We're Japanese!")

She guided me through the sea of people on the sidewalk and ushered me through the street. When we were out of sight of the lecherous old artist, she squeezed me to herself, her arms still around my shoulders.

"Oi, daijoubu ka? Are you all right?" she asked. I thought I detected a hint of worry. "That was pretty dangerous, not reacting or anything."

It was as if I was shaken awake from a trance.

"Ah… hai." I felt a bit ashamed of myself. "I'm sorry, I honestly didn't quite know what to do. I really liked his art."

"Well, so did I, but all of that went to pot when he started molesting you."

Sei's eyes were as hard as steel. Though I knew she was probably angry with the artist, I couldn't help but feel that somehow I was at fault too.

"I'm sorry," I said. The cobblestones of this street were wet with the light mist of morning.

She sounded surprised. "Why should you be? You were only attracted to his work, which was great, I'll admit…" She stopped in her tracks and nudged me playfully in the arm. "Oi, stop that. You're looking at your feet again," she reprimanded lightly.

I looked up at her. I felt like crying, or breaking something, but something in her eyes that moment placated me somehow. Sei smiled at me, brushing a stray bang away from my face.

"I don't know if I understand how you feel, but you weren't at fault here. The only fault I see is that you were so awed by his work that you couldn't quite accept that he was quite a lech." She broke into a naughty grin then, sliding her arm around my shoulders again, this time more playfully. "Demo daijoubu! I'll protect you from all lecherous old men from now on!" she beamed.

I smiled wryly. "Somehow I feel like I've leapt from the frying pan into the fire."

"Iie, iie," Sei replied, "though now you have to give me some sort of prize for protecting you." She gave me quite a squeeze as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm… Aha! What about a kiss?" she grinned at me, her face only inches from mine. She closed her eyes and puckered up. I took her face in my hand and pushed her away.

"What about… NO?" I said, wriggling away from her hold.

"Aw, no?" she asked plaintively, her lips turning from pucker to pout. "Why not? I _did _save you from that lecherous old coot. I think I deserve some kind of compensation," she justified.

"I think I just moved from one lecherous old coot to another," I retorted. Why, why, _why _ did it have to be a kiss? What, can't a coffee and a biscuit do it anymore?

"Oh? But every prince in every fairy tale gets kissed for every deed he does for the princess," Sei insisted. "And this _is _one of the most romantic places on earth. Why waste it on just some boring old tours to some crumbling buildings with dusty old things in frames?" She grinned. "Why, when you can be falling in love?"

"Because I can be doing something _worthwhile,_ like appreciating a culture that existed before the Dark Ages, or experiencing the sights, sounds and smells of one of the most famous cities of the world—or maybe—"

"_Experiencing_ a kiss in one of the most romantic places on earth!" Sei cut in, squeezing me tightly and stroking my hair. "Come on, just one. Please?"

"N-O. You're insane, Sei Satou."

"Aw, don't give me that. I won't stop talking about it until you kiss me," she said.

I raised an eyebrow. "Knowing you, though, you'd probably forget all about it tomorrow and move on to a new game," I said. "Probably something more disturbing than today's."

"Ah, ah, that's where you got me wrong, Tonkoneko," Sei said, waggling a finger at me. "I move from one game to another, but I never, _never_ leave a game unfinished." She smirked. "And I intend to finish _this_ game, Ton-ko-ne-ko."

"You might finish, but you'll never win," I said confidently.

"I always win, my dear Tomiko," she retorted smugly, sinking into a seat in the café we just entered. "Always."

_Sei_

The Sistine Chapel was up next on our tour. We joined up with the rest of our little group, comprised mostly of people we knew in passing, and, of course, Rizu and Kei. Before we met up with them, I kept heckling Tomiko about that kiss that she 'owed' me. My attempts at getting said kiss were thwarted at every turn by the blue-eyed barbarian, no matter how nicely I asked. So I decided to throw asking nicely out the window and tried a different approach. I snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her very close. "You sure you don't want to give me that kiss? We're about to meet up with Rizu and Kei, you know, and we'll lose our privacy."

Tomiko snorted as she swatted my hands away. "What privacy? We're on a busy street chock-full of Italians! This isn't private!"

"They're Italians. They won't mind a little kiss!"

"Maybe they won't, but I will!"

"Aww…"

"Why do you want to kiss me anyway? I don't taste good."

"Why don't you let me decide that?"

"Iya yo." (trans. "No way".)

We got to the park where we'd be meeting up with our group and guide. No one we knew was there yet. I spotted a beautiful pond nearby and, pulling Tomiko along with me, walked towards it. I threw in some small coins with a grand flourish. "I wish for a kiss from Harada Tomiko!" I proclaimed with a grin.

Tomiko glared at me. "What the hell? Announcing my name to some unseen deity lurking around here won't grant you any wish. Besides, you're supposed to toss coins into a well or a fountain. That's neither." She pointed off in some vague direction. "The Trevi's over there."

"This'll do," I laughed. Then I leaned in close again, hoping to catch her off-guard.

Tomiko made a face. "STOP IT. I mean it." She pushed me away and then abruptly walked off, leaving me behind at the pond. Oops. I guess I might have overdone it. I was about to go running after her when I thought I heard someone calling my name, so I looked around.

I was mildly startled to see someone in a Lillian High School uniform standing some distance away. That was when I remembered that the second-year students were on their own field trip to Italy, which would mean that Yumi, Yoshino, and Shimako would be around somewhere. I briefly considered looking for them, but almost immediately changed my mind. They were on _their_ trip, whatever lesson they had to learn they'd have to do it on their own, or they wouldn't grow. I had no doubt that those three could handle themselves, but I wanted them to figure that out. Especially my petit soeur, Shimako, who needed just a little bit more confidence in herself. If I wanted to help her, that meant I couldn't let them catch me here.

"Oi, Sei!" That was Kei's voice. Drat, so they were here already. I turned to see Kei, Rizu, and Tomiko waiting for me, so I forgot all about the Lillian girl who was gawking at me (why is it that most Lillian girls gawk at me?) and went off to join them.

Kei gave me a wry grin. "Spacing out? Not a very good idea, you know, especially since we're bound to get lost if we don't stick together."

I grinned back. "I've already been here before, so I kind of know my way around. Besides, your argument doesn't hold water. We could still get lost together." I gave Tomiko a sly wink. "Though I'd rather just get lost with her. Ne, Tonkoneko?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'd rather that YOU just get lost."

Rizu giggled inanely.

I looked at her. She seemed…happy. Was it the chocolates? I sneaked a look at Kei and found her to be a little too…lively…to be Kei. I suppressed a smirk, wondering if the Bacis Kei had bought happened to have a little too much sugar or if this strange development was due to something else. Chocolate-related, but something _else_. I glanced at Tomiko and saw her looking curiously at Rizu and Kei. She was probably wondering the same thing. I don't think either one of us had ever heard Rizu giggle. Laugh, snicker, guffaw, yes, but giggle? Inanely?

In a few minutes, we were all off to the Sistine Chapel. I didn't want to put Tomiko in an off-mood, so I decided I'd play the kissing game some other time. I didn't really expect her to kiss me, honestly, but I couldn't help myself, I guess. That stupid kiss thing was actually just a spur-of-the-moment idea, something that popped into my head after the whole artist incident. That goddamned lecher. I was hoping Tomiko would slap him the instant he put his hand on her arm, but the girl remained frozen in shock. I thought she'd gotten enough practice fending off amorous attempts from me to be able to effectively deflect any other such move. Guess she needed a little more practice. Having her stop any and all attempts at kissing on my part would probably be a good thing for her. Also, I knew that coddling her after the artist practically pawed her would be a bad idea. A return to normalcy was in order, and everyone knew what I was like _normal_.

And besides…

I guess I was curious. A small part of me wanted to know just what it felt like to kiss Tomiko. Because that small part of me was almost a hundred percent certain that it would be a pretty good thing. And, damn me, I wanted to believe it.

I'd been to the Sistine Chapel before, so it wasn't quite as big a deal for me as it probably would be for my three amigos. Honestly, churches and the like don't really impress me. God and I have had our little spat in the past, and we're still not speaking to each other. At least, _I_ wasn't speaking to Him yet; and I had no idea if He was trying to speak to me. (You know how it is. When you say you talk to God, people think you're spiritual, but when you say He talks to you, people will think you're insane.)

At any rate, we were in. Boy, I wish I could've taken a picture of Kei and Rizu. Their expressions were priceless. I was suddenly reminded of baby birds impatiently waiting for their mother to drop food into their open beaks, only in their case there was no trace of impatience, only a wide-eyed, slack-jawed admiration for the paintings literally wallpapering the entire chapel. There was a moment of respectful silence, and then they started whispering to each other, pointing out various biblical scenes and what not. I watched them go off together, trying not to yawn, and then I turned around, looking for Tomiko.

I wasn't quite prepared for what I saw.

Tomiko stood stock-still, her head tilted at a dangerous-looking, whiplash kind of angle. Her mouth was slightly agape, and her blue eyes were very, very wide as she took in the entirety of the place. I could read a variety of emotions within those icy orbs: awe, wonder, respect, amazement—all of that, and more. She loved it, being here, lost in that world of hers that no one could enter.

Suddenly, I felt quite alone. A bitter side of me, the one that lost to God a little more than a year ago, resented this place and how it easily transported Tomiko away. Suddenly I was in second year again, and I wanted to rebel, to drag her back from wherever she was, if only out of spite. Before I knew it, I was reaching out, with every intention of doing just that.

And then I stopped.

I couldn't bring myself to shake her out of her trance. I knew how much she loved the arts, especially painting, and for an artist like her to be here, well…let's just say it was probably the equivalent of a devout Muslim's trip to Mecca. Or a Christian's visit to the Holy Land, if you really wanted to be parochial about it.

I sighed. Guess I lost again. I was going to leave, get out, get some air—I was, after all, an uninvited devil in a holy place, if one could call it holy—but then I noticed that Tonkoneko was doing something strange. I watched her for a while, and felt my lips twitching in amusement in spite of myself.

She was starting to walk…_backwards_. Dazedly, and in small circles, Tomiko was walking backwards, her head still tilted at that angle, taking in every single detail that she could. As if she was the only one around. I glanced about, hoping no one would bump into her, and that she wouldn't bump into anyone, though I hardly thought that she'd notice if she bumped into the Pope himself. That was how caught up she was.

_What _is_ your world like?_ I wanted to ask her. _Take me there. I want to know what you're like in there._

After a few more minutes of mindless circling, Tomiko simply sank to her bum on the floor of the Sistine Chapel—the _Sistine Chapel_—and stared up at the ceiling. She looked like she was on the verge of tears. Some of the other visitors looked at her in surprise; Tomiko must've appeared to them to be quite insane.

_Not insane_, I found myself thinking, silently defending her. _Impassioned. Taken. _She was showing her respect by forgetting about everyone else.

I watched her for a while, wondering if Michelangelo's art was really _that_ moving, and then I went over and gently grasped her shoulders. "Come on, Tonkoneko. Up we go."

She didn't protest or resist. I helped her to her feet, then, with a resigned sigh, proceeded to guide her around the Chapel. Tomiko hardly even made a sound. She just went on staring at everything, completely lost in the paintings, lost in her own world. I let out another sigh, knowing there was no other way into that world but to look around myself, and so I did.

Perugino…Botticelli…Ghirlandaio…Rossellini…Signorelli…the premier painters of the 15th century, they were all here, their names and their works immortalized on the walls around us. There was Christ giving the keys of the faith to St. Peter (who was balding, for some reason—must've torn out most of his hair at how the Church must look now), and there was Botticelli's _Scenes from the Life of Moses_, which I couldn't quite understand save for the couple to the far right that seemed to be eloping from all the madness (good idea, in my opinion), and his _The Punishment of Korah_, which had even more insanity going on. The entire hullabaloo was making me dizzy. Not so with Tomiko. She appeared to be drinking everything in. I knew somehow that she was admiring the technique, style, and detail of the artworks more than their message. _How_ I knew that, though…I couldn't be sure.

We finally got to _The Last Judgment_, by none other than my favorite ninja turtle, Michelangelo. By this time, I had to admit, even if only to myself, that the artists of long-ago showed dedication, vision, and passion for their work. Not like most artists of today. Finger-painting lecher, as original as he was, had _nothing_ on these guys (unless he finger-painted an entire chapel while standing on a scaffolding near sixty-eight feet high into the air). As talented as Perugino et al were, and as beautiful as their works were, Michelangelo was, apparently, something else. This guy painted everything—and I do mean everything. _And_ he wasn't one for censorship, the bad-ass. I remember reading up on a dispute he'd had with the Pope's Master of Ceremonies Biagio da Casena. The guy said that Michelangelo's work was more suited to the public baths and taverns than a papal chapel. Michelangelo retaliated by working a likeness of da Casena into Minos, judge of the underworld. I told myself I'd have to drink to that sometime later. Cardinals of 15th century Rome apparently hadn't seen anything remotely resembling modern-day hentai. Sadly, the holy asses decided to besmirch Mike's paintings by hiring some schmuck whose name escapes me but is known as "Il Braghettone", or "The Breeches-Painter", because he painted fig leaves all over the pertinent anatomy. What a way to build your career.

_The Last Judgment_ loomed over me. I snorted. It seemed unfair, to be judged for things you did when you didn't know any better, to be told that you weren't good enough. Typical Christian behavior, and I hated it. For me, it was better to think of the Sistine as a museum rather than a church. I glanced at Tomiko, wondering if she knew just how much annoyance being here was causing me to feel. Her eyes were locked onto _The Last Judgment_, flitting from one detail to the other, perhaps noting how different it was from the other frescoes in the place. Did her reverence stem from something religious, or from something more spiritual than a closed set of stiff rules being bandied about by bible-beating hypocrites? I wish I knew.

While I'm wishing, I might as well wish—again—for that kiss. Heck, if I kissed Tomiko right now, she probably wouldn't even notice. I glanced at her profile for what must've been the twentieth time since we entered the Sistine. There was some kind of inner light in her eyes that really made her beauty shine. No offense to the artists who worked on everything in here, but Tomiko was a far lovelier treasure than all of their works put together.

After what felt like an eternity, it was finally time for us to leave. Our guide rounded us up like wild cattle, shooting off broken Italian in an effort to show off, then headed for the exit. Kei and Rizu hurriedly caught up from somewhere—God only knew where they'd been this entire time—and they were excitedly chattering away about the Sistine. I joined in from time to time with juicy bits of sarcasm, while Tomiko remained silent. She had this weird smile on her face, which made me think that that was probably how she'd look drunk, but her blue eyes were slowly growing clear again. (At one point, however, she turned and started walking backwards again, and I had to guide her by the elbow to make sure she didn't trip over something or fall down any steps. Good grief.)

I stayed for a while at the doors of the Chapel, going through everything that had transpired in my head. I decided that churches and religion still didn't impress me one bit, especially _this_ particular one. Places like this, and the feeling they invoke in you, well, it just held too many memories for me. I cherished those memories, but that was all that they were. Just memories.

Still, being here had given me a glimpse into her world. And, in spite of everything, somehow it was a beautiful experience.

-_Tomiko-_

The following day, we set off for Venice.

Before that, though, something happened the night before.

Sei and I were winding down for the night. She was _still_ on her "I want a kiss from Harada Tomiko" shtick, which annoyed me to the point that I actually just wanted to get the whole thing over with and just _do_ it to shut her up. What cinched the night for me though (or, rather, pushed me over the edge) happened when I was getting ready for bed. I had just taken a bath and was brushing my teeth. I left the door slightly ajar when I brushed my teeth, and proceeded to scrub away any and all food bits that might take up residence in my teeth. (Yes, I might have OCD. Bite me.) I was about to rinse when she crept up behind me and grabbed my waist, spilling my gargling water and almost causing me to spew toothpaste all over myself.

"Ho, are you freshening up for our kiss, Tonkoneko?" Sei purred into my ear. She _did _feel pleasantly warm against my back… Oh my Buddha, what was I THINKING?!

"Oi, oi, OI!" I said, backing away. "I thought you and Rizu had an agreement that the room was a no-molest zone?"

Sei grinned. "Well, the_bedroom_ is a no-molest zone," she refuted. "The _bathroom,_ however, is fair game. There was nothing about it in the verbal contract." I had to duck to avoid another glomp from behind, and whatever thoughts I might have entertained about giving in to her request (she _did_ help me out with that artist) flew out the window. Things were about to take a turn for the worse when I heard a knock on the door.

Kei and Rizu were out in the hall, dressed in their pajamas. Rizu had an unusually happy look on her face. They were holding hands.

"Hey," Kei said, smiling. "We couldn't really sleep, our adrenalin's still pretty much up. Let's have coffee at the lobby café."

I clambered off Sei (she had somehow managed to pick me up and was about to carry me to the bed kicking and screaming when Rizu and Kei came along) and pushed several strands of hair that came loose. "Okay, okay, let's go. Now."

The lobby café was almost deserted, with only a young Roman (also in her PJ's) curled up in a little cushioned chair with a fashion magazine. Kei grinned.

"This is perfect. Let's sit there, by the fireplace."

We had settled into the lavish couches with our mugs when Kei and Rizu suddenly burst out, "It's us now."

I knew that it would be sooner or later before it happened, so it wasn't much of a surprise for me. Sei, too, seemed to have sensed it coming. A grin was spreading across her face faster than wildfire. She leaned over and clapped Kei—_hard—_on the back.

"Uwa, omedetou!" she said. "So tell me, when's the wedding? Should I expect a little one toddling about soon?" she went on, winking. I had to smile. At least Italy had good romance for them.

Back at the hotel room, Sei was _still_ going on and on about the kiss thing. Glaring at her seemed to only encourage her to tease and prod about it, but somehow I wasn't up to it that night. Shooting her one last glare, I settled into bed.

Morning came before I even knew it, and I woke up to a nice soft feeling of warmth. Opening my eyes, I saw I had _two_ layers of blankets on myself. Turning over, I saw Sei's back, covered in one of her ubiquitous (and utterly ridiculous) long coats. It didn't take much to put two and two together. It _was really _cold last night, and now that I thought about it I seem to remember someone tucking me in with a second blanket.

Well, who else would _that _be?

I felt guilty. I had been nothing but a brat this whole time, now that I thought about it.

It was time that I paid her back for everything she did.

I edged over very quietly and peeked over her shoulder. She was still pretty much asleep, and there was the slightest hint of a little snot bubble contracting and expanding with her breaths. She actually looked quite cute asleep, like how even the naughtiest boys look like angels in repose. A little voice niggled in my head, urging me. Despite the protests of my right brain, I prepared to give her what she had been asking for the past few days. I closed my eyes, pursed my lips, and inched closer.

Actually, I had really meant to kiss her on the cheek. _Just _the cheek. How was I supposed to know that the hand of fate would have her tilt her head at the _exact_ moment and have my lips land on _hers?_

All the blood rushed to my head and I backed away immediately, tripping up on the blanket (which was entwined around my legs) and I toppled over the bed and landed on my bum on the floor with a _thud_.

Sei bolted upright and looked over the edge of the bed. "Oi, daijoubu?" she asked, a worried look crossing her now quite-awake face.

My hips hurt like hell, and my butt—well, my butt was indescribably _painful._ I wanted to cry, but I managed to recover and rub my eyes. I had to _pretend, _right?

"Ah, yeah," I said. I'd be nursing some pretty bad butt bruises later. "Was just having a very lucid dream, I guess."

"Ho? Was it about you giving me a kiss?"

"Hell no. And stop it about the kiss already."

Sei propped herself up on one elbow. "Aw. And I was having such a good dream. I dreamt that my princess gave me the sweetest kiss I could ever hope for, and under the Bridge of Sighs too. Any kiss under that bridge would ensure eternal love, did you know that?

"It's just some romanticized tourist shit," I retorted.

"Aw, have some romance in your life!" Sei exclaimed, bolting up and out of bed, arms outstretched.

"Not with you I won't."

"You'll be singing a different tune once I kiss you."

"I-ya-YO."

"When we go to Venice today, kiss me under the bridge for real, okay?"

"Hell no."

_Unless maybe if you fell asleep. But that's my secret,_ I thought with a small smile.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: Cinderella Date

(_Author's Note:_ I had gotten so caught up in the Christmas rush, which is why I took so long with this. TT anyway, here it is. Think of it as the long-delayed Christmas special.)

_-Sei-_

It was pretty late when I got off the phone with Tomiko. We'd gotten into that habit: phone each other at night when there wasn't much to do, and just talk about stuff. AND tease each other. Mostly it was me teasing her, but every so often Tomiko would send a well-aimed jab in my direction. This night was no different; I teased her to the point where she couldn't do anything anymore and just opted to say that she would get back at me tomorrow. I told her that she was free to try, and, after hearing her turn bed-bunny-ish on me, decided that I felt rather tired myself, and so we said goodbye.

I was holding my phone in my hand, grinning stupidly (because our conversation had been really funny) and I happened to look at the date and time on the display.

December 24. 11:59 pm.

Huh.

A minute to midnight, and my birthday. And Christmas, come to think of it. Two years ago, maybe several minutes earlier, I was at a train station, waiting for someone who would never come, for something that would never be. Sometimes I wondered if I was waiting still, and then...

What WAS I waiting for?

Things had gotten quite blurred by now. I realized that I wasn't smiling anymore, then I realized that I'd just put a damper on my own silly happiness, and then I felt myself smiling again, maybe a bit ruefully, maybe resignedly. I didn't know.

And then it was midnight. Happy birthday to me, woohoo, and all that.

I was at home. Nobody else but me and the household help. My parents were off on different trips; dad was away on business and mom was floating around on some cruise ship somewhere--the Bermuda Triangle, maybe--and so the house was pretty quiet.

I went over to my bed and plopped down on it, on my back. A lot of memories came flowing in. I'd long accepted this as being part of this particular season, since I usually opt to be alone while everyone else is enjoying themselves at some party or other, and when you're alone, well, expect a lot of thinking and reminiscing. Speaking of parties, the current Yamayurikai would be celebrating their own Christmas party right about now. What were the other two former Rosas doing?

My eyes were falling shut. I yawned, then pulled up the blankets and settled in. Birthday and Christmas greetings would come later, in the morning. As I drifted off, I thought of Tomiko and everything that had happened to us so far: our first meeting, P.E. dance class, Kei and Rizu, Italy, and all else in between, hanging like a mist in the back of my mind. Through the fog, I thought I felt her hand on mine, but that must've been just a dream.

"Sei-sama?"

The voice filtered into my consciousness like an annoying little earwig. I ignored it resolutely, telling myself that if I ignored it, it would go away and leave me alone. Today was for lazing about and doing nothing, and with just the right amount of willpower I could probably sleep until New Year's and not have to worry about my birthday or Christmas or...

"Sei-sama, wake up."

Ah. There was only one person in the house who would give me an order instead of the other way around. Shouko, the spunky maid, whom my mother hired only a few months ago. In spite of the short time she'd been in our service, the girl managed to pick up on my so-called odd habits and demeanor, and knew exactly how to deal with me. And, because she was such a good-natured lass, I felt it was safe enough to fill her in on my life. So yes, she knew about Shiori, the Yamayurikai, and lately, about Tomiko.

I opened one eye and regarded her lazily. "What?"

Shouko frowned disapprovingly at me. "You'll get fat if you stay in bed this long, you know, Sei-sama."

I closed my eye again. "Wake me up when it's next year."

"Believe me, I would, but Sei-sama has a visitor."

A visitor?

I opened both eyes this time. "Shouko, didn't you get the memo about me not seeing anyone today?" I joked.

"I did, but I threw it away. She says she's from your class, Sei-sama."

Curiouser and curiouser. I wondered what Kei would want with me so damned early, and on a holiday, too. I sat up and wiped my face with my hand. "I suppose it'd be too rude to send her away now," I muttered. "Send her in, then."

Shouko looked like she was suppressing a grin. "Ah...Sei-sama, are you really going to entertain such a pretty visitor in your sleepwear?"

"What part of Katou is pretty? Do tell." I got up and heard a distinct creak from my lower back. Ouch. "Send her in, Shouko, and stop laughing at me."

"I am not laughing at Sei-sama."

"You are in your head, now scoot."

Shouko finally gave way to her grin, and she pranced (what the...?) to the door and went out. I could hear her speaking to someone just outside. "Hai, Sei-sama will see you now."

"Ah, arigatou, Shouko-san."

My eyes popped open. That wasn't Kei's voice. I turned around just in time to see Tomiko enter my room.

All right, I know I've gone on about how pretty Tomiko is, but today was something else, even for her. You see, Tomiko has a habit of dressing casually, maybe even a bit carelessly, in the sense that she would just throw on the first thing she pulled out of her closet and go out in that. Usually she was in her airbrushed T-shirts and somewhat baggy jeans and sneakers.

Today, she was in something else entirely. Instead of her usual t-shirt she wore a brown, silk blouse with a design of soft, pink sakura blossoms scattered across it as though floating on a gentle breeze. Gone were the baggy jeans, replaced by a denim skirt with random patches of leather that reached down to mid-calf. And instead of sneakers, Tomiko wore stylish, scrunched-down, flat boots that more or less completed the whole look.

She grinned at me. "Ohayou," she greeted.

"Ohayou," I said, still a bit surprised. I hadn't expected this. "Well, well, and what brings you here so early?"

Tomiko pulled a face. "Nine A.M. is early for you? It's midmorning, baka. Here," and she thrust something into my hands.

I looked down at the decoratively-wrapped package. It felt a bit heavy. "What's this?"

Tomiko rolled her eyes. "It's your birthday present, Sei, what else?"

My jaw was probably scraping the floor. I expected my birthday to be placid, boring even, but this was a pleasant opposition. "Ho...did you actually go through all this trouble just to give me a present?" I tested the weight of the package in my hands. "What's in this thing?"

"Why not open it?" Tomiko suggested.

"I can?"

"Of course, silly, it's YOURS."

I went over to my desk--really just a cluttered mess on a table, with a barely visible laptop next to the more often-used computer--and set down Tomiko's gift. I opened it up to find a plastic container filled with something out of a Starbucks' pastry line-up: cream, bananas, and a dark brown crust that was either toffee or caramel. When I lifted the lid, a delicious scent wafted upwards from the treat. "Wow..." I said, not really knowing what else to say.

Tomiko looked a bit embarrassed. "It's my attempt at the Banoffee Pie."

I grinned at her. "This looks really good. I think I'll have it for breakfast."

"Some breakfast! Having cake for breakfast isn't exactly healthy, you know."

"Ah, but you made it, which means it's probably not at all junky, as Rizu would put it, ne?" I closed the container again. "Hold on, let's go have it together in the kitchen. Let me just throw on some decent clothes."

I snatched up some housewear and headed for the bathroom after telling Tomiko to sit down on the bed.

After hurriedly changing, I stepped out of the bathroom. Tomiko was looking around at everything in my room, but she turned her head to look at me. I thought I saw a thin veil of disappointment fall across her face.

"What?" I asked her.

"Nothing," she said, shaking her head. "I just…well, I just thought you might want to go out, was all."

I blinked. Holy crap, did I make some kind of birthday wish last night? Harada Tomiko wanted to go out with ME?

"You want to go out with me?" I asked it out loud. Heck, I had to make sure, right?

Tomiko looked even more embarrassed than she did earlier. "Hey, it's your birthday, why not?"

There was more to it than that, I thought. I waited, looking at her inquiringly until she sighed. "All right…look, lately you've been acting…I don't know. A bit different. Like your mind's always elsewhere. It's not abnormal to daydream or anything like that, but you've been doing it a lot. Too often to be…well…you. And you always have this serious look on your face—no, in your eyes. Your eyes are sad lately. So I got worried." She was perusing the floor. "And I got the feeling that you'd spend your birthday moping around, so I came over to see if I was right."

I'd forgotten just how perceptive this girl could be when she wanted to. I guess the season—and the memories I've associated it with—did have some kind of effect on me. I suppose not being around my old friends made me drop my guard a bit, enough to let Tomiko notice that Christmas was a season I'd sooner do without.

I tried not to sigh, but I guess something like it escaped me. Tomiko looked concerned. I realized that I cared enough—no, a lot—about her, and I knew it was time to fill in a couple of blank spaces. By this time Tomiko knew about the Yamayurikai and some aspects of my family life, but nothing about _her_.

I pulled up a chair and sat down right in front of her. "I don't really like Christmas."

Tomiko smirked. "I figured as much. You turned up your nose at the Christmas décor on the University grounds."

I grinned. "They're tacky. Anyway, tasteless décor isn't my main reason for disliking this season."

So I told her everything. About Shiori and how we met, about how our friendship soon turned into something more than just that, and about how we parted. When I got to the part about the train station and how I got Shiori's letter, Tomiko's face turned sad. Almost unbearably so. And I wondered if she had gone through a similar situation, but didn't think it was the right time to ask.

When I was done, she was silent for a while, going through what I just told her. Her eyes had turned distant, and I got the feeling that she was looking into my past somehow, seeing things through my perspective. Did she feel sorry for me? I hated having anyone pity me, especially over this, but could I help it if she decided I was rather pathetic?

Just when I was ready to crack a joke to get all the heavy feeling out of the air, Tomiko looked at me. I was surprised by the gentleness in her eyes.

"Wow…" she said softly, with a smile. "You must have really loved her."

For a moment, I couldn't say anything. She didn't pity me at all. Still, I couldn't quite put a finger on the emotion in her voice. Admiration? Compassion? Understanding? Something of each all rolled into one?

Finally I nodded. "Yeah."

I didn't think her eyes could turn any gentler, but they did, and she reached out a hand and covered one of mine with it. I couldn't bear it anymore. I stood up, cleared my throat, and scratched awkwardly at the back of my head. "So, aren't you spending Christmas with anyone? Family?"

She snorted. "Mom's going to be at a party tonight. Catering. And mingling, too, I suppose. Ben's at a friend's house, and as for me, well, I'm here." She grinned. "I came from Saitama, actually."

"Ho, all the way from Saitama just to celebrate my birthday with me?"

Tomiko's nose crinkled. "Yeah, and what does the great Satou Sei want to do on her birthday? Spend the whole of it lounging in bed."

I gave her a wicked grin. "You could spend it here with me, you know. I wouldn't want you to have come all the way here dressed to the nines for nothing."

She stood up and flicked a fingertip against my nose. "What makes you think I'd do that?"

"Oh, I don't know. My irresistible charm?"

"Spare me." Tomiko chuckled. "Actually, I wanted to drag you out today."

I nodded. "So you've said." I sidled in close. "Ah, you wanted a date with me?"

She shrugged. "If you want to look at it that way, fine. Yes."

My jaw was doing a lot of floor-scraping today. And it wasn't even 9:30 yet. I pulled away slightly, wondering if it was really Tomiko standing next to me in my room. "Are? Really? You're okay with going on a date with me?"

"Think of it as a birthday-slash-Christmas gift." Tomiko smirked. "Hey, I know you hate Christmas, but I happen to like it, and I think I'll make it my personal mission today to show you why." She let out a deep breath. "All right, then, here. Today, I'm yours. Until the clock strikes twelve tonight, you can think of me as your date on this, your birthday." She lifted a single brow at me. "But only until twelve, and then the spell's broken. Agreed?"

I chuckled. "So, this is a Cinderella Date, or something like that, isn't it?"

She nodded. "Sou. A Cinderella Date. You being Cinderella, of course."

I grimaced. "While I disagree with who's playing Cinderella, I guess I can't complain." I grinned and draped an arm around her shoulders.

_She did not protest_.

"Uwo! This'll be fun! All right. I'll get dressed, and then we'll go around town. Anywhere you want to bring me is fine."

After a brief argument on what clothes I should wear, we settled on a seldom-if-never-used black coat that was, in my opinion, too stylish for me, dark denims, and an airbrushed t-shirt from—who else?—Tomiko herself. She surprised me with yet another gift after some minutes of poking fun of the contents of my closet (what she found wrong with tan-colored long coats and white, long-sleeved polo shirts I'll never know). The dark gray t-shirt had a beautiful design of a fox on the front. "Why a fox?" I asked.

Tomiko rolled her eyes. "Why, the fox asks."

I laughed. I _was_ the mischievous sort. "Thank you."

I thought I saw her blush. "You're welcome."

There was definitely something different in the air. What it was, though, I didn't dare find out. Not yet. It was probably, most probably, just wishful thinking on my part. I throttled a strange, warm feeling in my chest, stubbornly told myself that Tomiko was just being a good friend, and then retreated into the bathroom again to get dressed.

-_Tomiko-_

I looked around the room as she got ready for today. Butterflies were taking up residence in the pit of my stomach, and I wondered what possessed me this morning to get up and go all the way to Tokyo to see her. Then again, I had to find out what exactly was eating her. All throughout the week before Christmas, Sei was, well, _morose_. She was a lot less energetic than usual, and when she thought no one else was looking, I'd see her shoulders slump a little as we watched Christmas set itself up around us. I guess I got worried. I had planned to give her the pie and just be on my way to my flat, but my heart had gone out to her before I had even thought of heading for the door.

The Cinderella date was something I had thought of spur-of-the-moment, and I didn't exactly think she'd expressly agree to it. I don't even know if I should have blurted it out in the first place. Declaring myself, um, _hers_ up until midnight wasn't exactly my style, I know. But Christmas _was _working its magic overtime, and I felt it too. I was feeling generous. And admittedly, a part of me was feeling… I could not put a word to it, but I'd say it was the feeling of jumping off a burning plane and praying to whomever that the backpack you snatched up on the way out WAS a parachute.

If I had to describe Sei's bedroom in a word, though, I'd have to pick 'spartan'. It wasn't exactly bare, and it DID have a computer AND a laptop, but it was devoid of posters, accessories, anything that would explicitly announce that a girl inhabited it. It was not exactly what I expected to see, given how the rest of the house looked, I suppose. Rich but empty. I wondered if I could justifiably describe Sei that way. But no, that would be incorrect. Cruel, even. She doesn't exactly have a three-word personality, if you catch my drift.

Sei emerged from the bathroom in the outfit I had helped her pick out (If I hadn't taken matters into my own hands, she would've come out in one of those ubiquitous and absurdly redundant khaki longcoats. Who knew she'd have half a closetful of them?) I had to admit, she looked better than I thought she would, what with that jacket; and well, the shirt brought the color of her eyes out, more than I had expected. Or hoped.

"Well, what do you think?" she said, sounding eager to please, so unlike her. She held her arms out at length, looking at me with a lopsided smile.

"Cool. You…" I started before I could even think. I wanted to grin, to compliment her honestly, to lay—what?—bare. Damn, it was too much too soon. I sucked it all in and managed to let out a "You look less of a randy old goat now." I didn't want midnight chiming in now.

"Ho? Even on our Cinderella date, you _still_ act like yourself," she commented mildly, and I thought she sounded a bit disappointed. Either that or I just wanted to believe that. This date was going to be much more awkward than I thought. I stood up and put on my coat, and as I did, I spotted a nice periwinkle scarf carelessly slung over the back of her chair. I pointed it out to her.

"Hey, why don't you wear that? It's kind of blustery today," I said. "Besides, it would be the perfect finishing accessory."

"Hn. Meh. I don't know much about finishing accessories and such…" her voice trailed. She took the scarf from the chair and wrapped it around her neck. "But if _my_ Tonkoneko will love me more for it, why not?"

She was grinning as she said this, and I can say with all honesty that all the hairs at the back of my neck stood on end. The cold air did nip at my nose on the way to Tokyo (turning it a bright red, like a certain reindeer), but I guess that old saying was true. Some kind words could warm three months of winter.

_Sei_

I was so tickled pink that Tomiko was taking this Cinderella Date thing so seriously. For one thing, she had her arm linked with mine, something that she normally doesn't do. She wasn't the touchy-feely type, unlike yours truly, who enjoys glomping hapless victims like her. I suppose the cold winter air had something to do with her keeping in close proximity. Winter wasn't so bad after all. It was just the Christmas part I didn't like dealing with. For another, she kept suggesting places where we could go, like amusement parks or movies, both of which I knew she didn't much enjoy, for some reason. She was really going out of her way for me. That was enough to get a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling in my chest. And, truthfully, I enjoyed having her 'on my arm', so to speak. I wondered if people who saw us mistook us for a couple.

We'd been walking around for a while, still trying to decide where to go, when she suddenly snapped her fingers. "I know," she said, grinning up at me. "Let's go to Juuban Koen."

" Juuban Park?" I said. "What's there?"

"What else?" she laughed. "A winter festival. They've also got some rides and other things going on. And I'll bet you we'll find stuff to upgrade your closet material."

I snorted with laughter. "Upgrade? You REALLY think my fashion sense sucks, don't you?"

"It doesn't suck, Sei, it just doesn't exist in the first place," she retorted with an evil smile.

"You're a cruel woman, Tonkoneko."

She sniffed. "Let's see if you can still say that at the end of today."

I laughed, though I knew inside that she was right. I didn't even mean that, really. She was being very kind to me. Not too many people are kind these days.

Juuban Koen turned out to be really lively. Quite a number of people were there, walking around and looking at the stalls that sold an assortment of things, food, toys, clothing, accessories, and more food. Hah, now I knew why Tomiko had suggested Juuban. The smell of warm, tempting edibles in the cold winter air was enough to draw any hardcore foodie in, and Tomiko was definitely a hardcore foodie.

We walked arm-in-arm past numerous stalls lined up on either side of a long, stone path. One stall in particular caught my eye; it was being managed--so to speak--by five girls, three of which were bickering with each other nonstop. Apparently they were selling takoyaki, but one of them, a girl with impossibly long pigtails, was eating most of the wares, which really rendered the point of selling them useless. Tomiko took pity on them and bought two orders of takoyaki, hoping to stop their arguing, but as we left we heard them pick up exactly where they left off. Sweatdrop.

As we got to the end of the path, we noticed a commotion some ways off. There was a stage and a huge group of screaming girls stood in front of it, braving the cold weather in order to watch a boy band of some sort perform.

"Oh, please." Tomiko snorted, rolling her eyes.

I grinned. "You don't like boy bands either, eh?"

"They're terrible," she said. "I'd rather listen to rock bands. Makes me wish Do As Infinity hadn't disbanded."

"Larc's still alive."

"Thank God for that." We both laughed, and then she continued. "Who IS that singing, anyway?"

I craned my neck. "Three guys in stupid, colored suits and outrageously long ponytails."

Tomiko laughed. "I think I've seen those guys on TV! Their songs put me to sleep."

I snickered. "They make for good comic entertainment, though."

"True."

We left the 'concert' area and found ourselves wandering through more stalls. Tomiko suddenly let out a delighted cry and hurried towards one of them, a candied apple stall run by an elderly couple. They exchanged greetings, I was introduced as her college friend, and then they started talking. I listened to the animated conversation and found out that Tomiko had worked for the couple during the summer break, and that she'd done such a good job that they had entrusted her with their stall and gone off on a vacation of sorts. It was clear to me that they doted on her like she was their grandchild, which made me smile. At least she'd found some people who showered her with affection when her mother was too busy with her catering business. At the end of their talk, we walked away with two caramel apples that were a little bit more caramel than apple, thanks to the extra coating of taffy that the couple had smothered all over the fruit. "This'll make it a bit hard to eat," I said lightly, and to prove my point I sunk my upper front teeth into the treat and let go. The whole thing remained comically stuck to my teeth.

Tomiko threw her head back and laughed. I grinned (through my mouthful of caramel apple) and wondered if she really was having a good time. A scary thought occurred to me that she may not really be enjoying herself, that she was just taking pity on me. I hoped not, heck, I wouldn't take pity on me.

We then came upon the attraction part of the park, the area with all the rides and prize stalls. I hadn't realized just how big this park was until I realized that there was a small rollercoaster off to one side and a huge-ass Ferris Wheel right smack dab in the center of the place. "Now HOW on earth did we manage to not see THAT?" I joked, pointing at it.

She barely glanced at it. "Hey, look, House of Mirrors," she said, pulling my arm and practically dragging me over there. The thing was little more than a shack, and it looked spookier than any haunted house attraction I'd ever seen.

"You wanna go through that?" I asked dubiously.

Tomiko smiled. It looked a bit forced. "Sure, why not? It'll be fun."

Her tone lacked conviction, but before I could protest, she secured us a couple of tickets and then we were inside.

The house was, in a word, annoying. It was dark, and I kept bumping into everything--mirrors, boxes, walls, glass, you name it, I cracked my damn nose against it. We even bumped into another couple (technically I CAN say that, me and Tomiko being a couple for today). I quickly apologized, and they graciously said that it wasn't really anyone's fault, since it was so confusing in there. "About that," I said, noting that Tomiko seemed speechless with something akin to fear, "could you point us in the right direction? We just want to get out of here."

The shorter one of the two smiled. "Ara, have you been wandering around for hours now?"

I scratched at the back of my neck. "I don't know, but it does feel like that."

The taller one grinned. "Just follow this hallway out until it forks off in two directions. Take the one on the left, and ignore every other door until you get to the second to the last one. All the other doors just open to reveal more mirrors."

I heard Tomiko breathe a sigh of relief, and felt her grip on my arm tighten. "Ah, thanks. By the way...if you know the way out, what are you two still wandering around in here for?"

The taller one suddenly seemed embarrassed, but the shorter one laughed. She had wavy hair. "Let's just say...it will be rude not to answer your question, but it WILL be very tasteless of me to tell you exactly why."

I understood immediately. They WERE a couple, after all. "Well, thanks for your help."

Tomiko and I hurried along to the exit. My companion was almost running. Her grip on my arm was so tight, I thought my circulation would get cut off. I could hear her breathing fast, almost panicked. This was more confusing than the damnable maze of mirrors we were in. Why suggest we enter this house when she wasn't going to enjoy it?

We finally made it back out into the winter sunlight. Tomiko was gasping for air, and I could see how pale she'd grown. She was also trembling. I grabbed her arm and pulled her into a semi-embrace to steady her. "What's wrong?" I asked, truly worried.

She shook her head. "Nothing...I just..." She sucked in a deep breath. "I'm...I guess I just don't like closed spaces."

I blinked. "You're claustrophobic?"

She gave me a wan smile. "Yeah."

"Baka. Why'd you go for the House of Mirrors then? It's always claustrophobic in there."

Tomiko shrugged, looking at the ground between us. "I dunno...I guess I thought you'd enjoy it."

I gave her a playful push. "Silly Tonkoneko. I'd enjoy it only if you enjoyed it, too."

She didn't reply. Her cheeks were suddenly quite bright red. At least the air had restored her complexion. I looked around, wondering what we could go on next to get her mind off of her latest harrowing experience. I grinned. "Say, Tonkoneko, you like rollercoasters?"

The rollercoaster WAS small, but it did go pretty fast, and it was a fun, thrilling ride. Tomiko was screaming my ears off, but she was laughing, too, which was a really good thing. When the ride was over we were both breathless with the rush. Our hair was in a state of dreadful disarray, but we didn't care. "That was fun!" Tomiko exclaimed, her face alight with childish exuberance. "What else do we go on?"

We went through almost every ride, including the kiddie bump car one they had near the rollercoaster, and spent about ten minutes trying to knock each other giddy while trying not to scare the kids. Eventually they ganged up on me, Tomiko included, and decided that I was their prime target for the last three minutes we had left. She had the most wicked grin I'd ever seen on her yet, and not even my driving prowess could get me out of the pinch I was in.

"Traitor," I told her as soon as I had my feet back on the ground and my vision had stopped shaking.

She laughed. "Had to get you back for the first time you ever took me for a ride," she replied with a casual shrug. Then she affectionately linked arms with me again. "So, are we done here?"

"We haven't gone on the Ferris Wheel yet," I reminded her.

A shadow passed over her face, and her gaze dropped down to her feet. "I'd really rather not."

"You afraid of heights, too?"

Tomiko was quiet for a while. A long while. And then she said, "No. But my last experience with the Ferris Wheel wasn't something I'd like to repeat, least of all with you."

I stopped and turned to face her. To her credit, she did look at me, right in the eye, for a few moments before breaking contact. "The last time I went on that with someone," she began sadly, "we stepped off and went our separate ways. I like you, you know...I mean, I value my friendship with you, and call me superstitious or stupid, but I don't want to lose another good friend."

Something went click. "You're not just talking about some friend here, are you?" I asked as gently as I could.

She looked up at me again, and I could see a great sense of loss in her eyes. Then she lowered her head. "No. It wasn't just a friend."

I knew it. Only someone who'd been through a similar kind of loss and heartache could really empathize with me the way she did. "When did this happen?"

She shrugged. "Spring."

No wonder she hated the season. She hated it the same way I hated THIS season. And she'd been carrying her pain all on her own the whole time. It was the only way she knew how to deal with anything.

Tomiko was still hanging her head. I gave her a playful little nudge with my shoulder, and when she looked up I smiled. "Oi, you're not going to lose me on some silly ride. But I can understand why you don't want to go on the Ferris Wheel. I don't particularly like waiting at train stations on any given day myself, which is why I got a car." I put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm glad you opened up a bit today. You don't have to keep it all in, you know. If you haven't noticed yet, I'm always around."

She gave me a wan smile. "Thanks. It's not that I don't want to let you in on my life. It's just that, well, I've never really felt like talking about it. Until today, that is."

Our gazes held. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I thought I felt a faint tug, a feeling of wanting to pull in a bit closer to Tomiko, but then logic kicked in, and I realized that the silence between us, while comfortable, may soon turn awkward. Luckily, Tomiko's stomach decided to provide a welcome distraction. I heard a rather deep and insistent growl. She turned a bit pink, and I laughed. "Chow time!" I declared, grinning and throwing my arm around her shoulders. "Knowing you, I bet you have just the perfect place in mind."

She snorted but didn't bother to shrug out of my half-embrace. "As a matter of fact, I do. Which is more than I can say for you, Miss Eat-out-of-a-Microwave."

"Microwaves are God's gift to humans."

"No, they're a result of laziness."

"I'd say they were practical."

"Only because you're lazy."

"That's not true."

"Oh? Explain why I have to cook for you almost every day then."

I grinned. "Because you secretly adore me and have fantasies about being a housewife. Mine, to be specific. Ne, Tonkoneko?"

She punched me—rather hard—in the shoulder, which sent me reeling away with a half-groan, half-laugh, and then we linked arms again and left the park.

_-Tomiko-_

I couldn't believe it. I was spending the day with _her._ And I was actually enjoying myself. I liked seeing her eyes crinkle into tiny fringed lines as she laughed. I liked how her cologne mixed with her smell, how her close proximity made my heart race, but my knees melt. I liked everything.

Dare I say I _loved_ it?

Hell, no. I pushed any and all thoughts of anything other than keeping this a _friendly _date out of my head. I convinced myself that any feeling that this day would ever bring me would end the minute the clock in the park struck twelve, just like the magic in that goddamn fairy tale. But still, a tiny strand of me hoped. And I absolutely HATED it. I would have apologized to her for any bipolar behavior this turmoil inside made me exhibit, but as she was the cause of my emotional mutiny, why even bother?

I knew it was only a matter of time until I had to tell her about the Ferris wheel. I hate going on it now as much as I loved it _then._ But then again, I knew that certain things would come out as a result of this strange friendship.

Somehow though, spending Christmas with her was the best decision I had ever made all year.

There were two ridiculously large, mass-market food stands, both serving substandard hotdogs, popcorn and other typical fare. Snubbing them both, I made my way down the little alley between them, pulling Sei by the hand. She raised an eyebrow, and she grinned at me evilly.

"Oh, where could my little kitten be taking me now? Is this place secluded?" she asked, her words rife with meaning.

"It _does_ look like it, ne?" I replied mildly, looking her in the eye and giving her a sly smile of my own.

Sei arched an eyebrow and smiled lopsidedly, though her eyes showed—_betrayed?—_that she was trying to gauge whether I was joking or not. Did I see uneasiness, or even hope? Or was she just rifling through her grey matter for a good comeback? I was betting on the latter.

"Ho?" Her eyes twinkled.

"Relax," I said. "I'm just taking you someplace to eat."

"Oh, I AM relaxed, Tonkoneko. Are you taking me someplace to eat you?" She leaned in dangerously close, pulled me to herself and winked. My head was reeling.

"Not _me,_ silly!" I said, wriggling away, but taking her arm at the last moment. "Just come along." I suddenly remembered something. "Ne, Sei, you like spicy food?

"I hang out with YOU, right?"

I had to smirk. "I mean to ea—never mind. Whatever. Anyway, we're here." I skidded to a stop at a smallish cart sandwiched between the hulking mega-eateries. The tang of spices and fish cakes hung in the air around it, and there was a considerable amount of commotion discernible from underneath the blue cotton curtains. Sei looked a bit puzzled, then curious.

"You sure this place is good? This looks like any other food stall we've passed, really," she said with a bit of doubt.

"You'll like it if you like spicy food. This place is run by a guy named Liu. He's super friendly, really. He's from Taiwan, and this is his hotpot shop." With that, I took a corner of cotton curtain and parted a way in for us.

The smoke wafted—more assaulted, really—us the minute we stuck our heads in. Liu looked up from ladling a good-sized serving of roiling-hot soup to give me a huge grin. He was a middle-aged, robust man with a grinny kind of face, the kind happy tanned farmers have.

"Oho, the ojou-san has returned!" He winked at me. "Ready to try your luck again?" he asked in that funny, nasal accent.

"Hey, Liu-san!" I grinned back. "Yeah, but I brought reinforcements." I motioned to Sei, who was looking thru the vats of steaming food with great interest. "This is my friend Sei."

He grinned at Sei, who grinned back. Something about that man WAS infectious. "So, bocchan, ready to take the Liu's Hundred-Treasure Spicy Hotpot Challenge?" he asked her.

"Definitely!" Sei chimed in, throwing him a wink. When he turned to the counter behind him to get things ready, though, she muttered to me under her breath, "What did I just get us into?"

I had to laugh. "Well, there's a chance we can get our lunch for free. We just have to get thru eating each and every one of the hundred hotpot treasures without giving up," I replied, trying not to laugh at Sei's increasingly incredulous face. "Easy, right?"

"Not if we have to get thru a hundred vats of hotpot!" she exclaimed.

"Relax, we don't have to do that," I assured her. "We just have to have one—_one piece—_of the different items in the vat, and well, that's not really much," I continued, pointing to some short pieces of kani crabstick bubbling merrily in Liu's nuclear broth.

Sei's furrowed brows relaxed a bit. "So, it's more a matter of surviving the liquid hell of the broth than stuffing your face silly, hmm?"

"Something like it."

Sei flexed her arms in front of her and put them behind her head. "Well, let's go then," she grinned.

"I'll have you know, bocchan, that your ojou-chan here holds the record for the farthest gone," Liu said, setting down two plates before us. "No one's reached the hundred-treasure mark in Tokyo before."

I smiled up at him. "Today might prove historical for you, then."

_Sei_

Between the two of us, finishing the hundred-treasure mark, as Liu so theatrically put it, was a cinch. Between me and my stomach, however, getting my share of the hotpot's stuff from my mouth to my seemingly bottomless pit was a tremendous struggle. My tongue felt like it was literally on fire. I'm betting I was redder than I'd ever been before in all of my life on this earth. At one point, I turned and asked Tomiko if my tongue was what was hanging out beneath my chin, and she told me, laughing and leaking tears, that it was my scarf.

The trick was, as I belatedly figured out, to eat slowly. When both Tomiko and I had reached the thirtieth-treasure mark, we got the hang of it. Time passed pleasantly by (punctuated with mild choking and slight palpitations) while Tomiko and I talked about any number of things. After we finished off the hundred hotpot treasures, we settled down with two bottles of Ramune and went on talking, taking in the sights and sounds and people passing by Liu's stall. Thanks to the damnable nuclear hotpot, I didn't really feel the air getting colder as day progressed slowly but surely to night.

And then Tomiko, who was telling me about some of her old highschool escapades, happened to glance up mid-sentence at a small wall clock hanging on the back wall of Liu's shop. She let out the most piercing shriek I'd ever heard. I nearly fell out of my seat in horror. "What?" I demanded, wondering what she'd seen. Was it a cockroach? I'd heard her reaction to cockroaches before, and the decibels were pretty much the same level.

"We're going to be late!" she gasped. She leapt to her feet and snatched up my wrist. "I can't believe I didn't pay any attention to the time!"

"Late? For what?"

Instead of answering me, she turned to Liu. "We're okay here, right Liu?"

Liu grinned and nodded. "Feel free to come back next time! I'll surely think of a better challenge for you, ojou-chan."

Tomiko grinned back, then turned on her heel and dashed out of the shop, dragging me along with her.

"Where are we going now?" I managed to ask.

"You'll find out when we get there!" she shouted over her shoulder.

We ran haphazardly through the park, out of it, down the street, around corners, and well into another park, this one much smaller than Juuban but with double the number of trees. The adrenalin was flowing through us both. I was pretty sure it was cold as heck out here, but I scarcely felt it. It's rare that someone took ME by the hand and led me to something…in fact…had that ever happened?

Finally we came to a thin strip of still water lined with morose-looking trees. Dark buildings rose up like forbidding lords in the distance. Daylight had practically disappeared, leaving us in the cold darkness. It was the stuff of horror stories, where you half-expect a werewolf or a vampire to come out of the shadows—or, worse yet, your own companion to turn into something nightmarish. I shook my head and decided I'd been reading too much Poe or Kipling. "Ne, what's all this? Where ARE we?"

Tomiko was bent over, her hands on her knees, busily trying to catch her breath, which puffed and lifted into the air like cirrus clouds. "Whew! Made it! And I thought I wouldn't be able to get you here in time."

"In time for what?" I asked suspiciously. Was this a Christmas gimmick of sorts?

She straightened up and pulled out her cell phone. "Aaaand in ten…nine…eight…seven…six…"

"Are we going to see some fireworks?"

"Of a sort. Three…two…one…" Tomiko's eyes lit up, and she smiled.

And suddenly, everything was ablaze.

I could hardly believe what I was seeing. The manmade canal lined with trees was aflame with Christmas lights, the sudden burst of light emanating even from the dark buildings around the park, the wildly night-tinged colors of the lights playing on the water's surface…

It was beautiful.

I realized why Tomiko loved Christmas. It was for the simple beauty of the artfully-decorated lights that adorned this park. It was for the people who had deemed the season important enough to turn what was once ordinary into something more than just that. Simple enough reasons, childlike even, but that was enough for me. I looked at Tomiko, who stood next to me, beaming as brightly as the lights that danced and twinkled along the trees and the water, and I knew that I could love Christmas as well, because someone had thought I was important enough to take this much effort to make me happy just when I needed it most.

My eyes stung. I blinked, wondering if it was just the cold air. I opened my mouth to say something, but then I realized I didn't know what to say. What _could_ I say? 'Wow' seemed too stupid. 'This is beautiful' was definitely an understatement. 'Thanks for bringing me here' was just not enough. Nothing I could say at that moment could possibly be enough to tell her exactly what I felt. For that matter, what I felt couldn't really be called 'exact', because I was feeling too much of everything and all in a whirl. Warmth, gratitude, joy—mostly joy, a gut-wrenching, throat-constricting kind of joy.

Tomiko looked worried. "Err…you don't like it?"

I tried to recover. "No, no, I DO! Honestly, I do." I smiled. I think I was shaking. "Thank you. Really."

She smiled back. Things got much brighter when she did; it felt like I was on the receiving end of a prolonged flash from a good camera. And she was the sole subject, her face, everything that was her, outlined in that light.

That was when I realized that I hadn't really done anything for her, or given her a Christmas gift.

Oh, shit.

Tomiko started talking about the park, about how she'd happened upon it and how she'd instantly fallen in love with it, and so on, but I was barely listening. I was wracking my addled brain for something, _anything_, that I could give her. I was an inch away from panicking, but I couldn't let her see that or she'd think she'd done something wrong.

And then I remembered something. Something she'd _definitely_ love.

I looked around for a watch and found a ridiculously huge one, hanging from the side of a building some ways off, the city's local version of Big Ben. It was dangerously close to midnight. I had to move fast.

Oh, well. At least we'd work off whatever fat we gained from Liu's hundred (heart-stopping) treasures.

I grabbed Tomiko's wrist, cutting her off in mid-sentence, and said, "Come on, there's something I want to show _you_!" and started to run.

"Where are we going?" she gasped, sounding very surprised.

I grinned wolfishly. "You'll find out when we get there!"

-_Tomiko-_

Suddenly, we were running again.

Sei led me out of the little park, swinging back into Juuban Koen. I glanced at the Big Ben-ish clock on the tallest building in the park. 11:50.

We had ten minutes.

I could barely recollect the route we took going to wherever we were going, as far as I was concerned there were just trees and light flashing by at breakneck speed. My head was starting to spin on itself as my eyes struggled to keep pace with my feet. It felt like the only things I was certain of at that point were that I existed, and that Sei did too, pulling me along like a rag doll (albeit a very nimble one) thru the trees, the lights, the scenes.

Now that I thought about it more, that was basically how every day went ever since I met her. It was a heady mix of vivid images and scenarios and God-knows-what, with the only constants being ever only her and myself. I was not quite sure if I liked that, but it wasn't that I hated it either. It was like being trapped with her in a kaleidoscope belonging to a very large and hyperactive child.

I wondered if it could last forever.

We finally stopped at a little pathway leading to some sort of clearing, and at that point Sei clamped her hands over my eyes.

"Uh-uh-uh, no peeking," she clucked into my ear. I was taken aback, but she kept her arms securely around my shoulders, walking me into the clearing. At least I hoped it was a clearing. It was dark, and my steps were uncertain, but I felt surprisingly safe.

I felt Sei stop behind me, so I stood still as well. There were sounds of burbling around us, like thousands of happy little brooks. I felt a light mist touch my face and leave microscopic, tickly drops of water on my face. At least I HOPED it was water.

"Well, we're here," she murmured. "Are you ready?"

"Un," I nodded. She gently lifted her hands, and I slowly opened my eyes.

The gurgling sounds came from this one artist's painstaking effort to create a symphony of light. There were probably a hundred different-sized little pillars packed closely together in a half-circle, made out of fiberglass. They glowed all the colors you could probably think of in this lifetime, and each pillar gushed forth water that cascaded over its sides, like a hundred minute waterfalls.

That wasn't the only thing that made my heart stop.

Right in the middle of pond, staring up at the towering rainbow, was a sculpture of a little girl who looked like she jumped out of a Ghibli movie. She was sitting astride a majestically enormous fox king, its nine tails spread out in different colors. There was so much going on around them, yet their expressions were serene, like they were at ease because they faced all this together. For some odd reason, I wanted to cry. I looked over at Sei, expecting to see her grinning smugly at me.

Sei was looking at me, alright, but there was no hint of smugness anywhere. Shockingly, she had a look on her face that might be best described as a combination of worry, expectance, and somehow, a warmth that was almost reassuring.

Like that fox.

"Wow," I finally managed to say. "Thanks for bringing me here, Sei."

The worry in her eyes faded away, and she smiled at me gently. "Iya."

She held my gaze for a bit longer. I was starting to feel funny when I realized with a jolt that I'd forgotten something.

Good old Rizu.

"Oh, wait! Shit, right!" I burst out, rummaging through my bag. "Rizu will KILL me if I forget about this!" IT should have been there somewhere. Finding it in the deepest recesses in my dump-it-all-in bag, I fished it out and placed it in her hand.

"Here," I smiled. "From Rizu and myself. I almost forgot it. Happy Birthday again."

_Sei _

I looked down at the bracelet Tomiko had just given me. It was an intricate piece made of leather and wooden beads, and had a little feather tucked in for good measure. It wasn't quite like anything I'd seen in shops before, and the way everything interlaced showed me just how much work Tomiko had put into it. I shook my head.

"This is too much, you know. Three gifts in one day, and I haven't gotten you anything."

Tomiko shrugged and smiled. "It's okay, really, Sei. You don't have to." She chuckled. "I'm not even supposed to be celebrating Christmas."

I looked at her. "Because you're not Christian?"

She tilted her head to one side curiously. "How did you know?"

"Back in Italy, when we were leaving the Sistine Chapel, I noticed that you copied Rizu and Kei and dipped your fingers into the basin of holy water by the doors. Only you used your left hand. Christians normally use their right."

Tomiko laughed. She seemed a bit embarrassed. "Looks like I got caught." She smiled at me, the corners of her eyes crinkling. "Guess it's no use when you're the subject of a fox's interest."

I snorted. "If I were really as smart as a fox, I should've had enough foresight to see this coming. I feel pretty bad, not being able to give you a Christmas gift."

She waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it, Sei. Like I said, it's okay. I…" she paused, hesitating, then said, "I'm just glad you're back to your usual self."

No way I was letting Christmas pass us by without giving her something. Our breaths were steaming in the cold air, and I thought she looked a bit paler than usual. I realized then that she wasn't really wearing much protection against the cold.

I snapped my fingers. "I know! Here," I removed the periwinkle scarf she'd egged me to wear. "It's yours."

She hurriedly protested, but I looped the scarf around her neck and pulled her close. I intended to give her a gift, and I wasn't going to let her bolt. "Ah, hold still, silly," I said, wrapping the scarf twice more around her neck (yes, it was that long…the scarf, not her neck).

Tomiko was looking everywhere but at me, thoroughly embarrassed. Maybe it was because she thought I had some personal attachment to the scarf, and for me to be giving it away was something great personal sacrifice on my part. She was sensitive that way.

I adjusted the scarf, making sure I wasn't unconsciously strangling her, and stepped back a bit to look. Nice. "There," I said, smiling. "It suits you."

For some reason, Tomiko was quite red in the face. She didn't look away or find something of considerable interest on the ground or anything like that. She was still looking at me, right into my eyes, and I could almost swear that I still had that scarf around my neck, because her eyes were so warm. It didn't feel like winter at all, not when she was looking at me like that.

Finally, she murmured, "Ah…domo. You shouldn't have done that."

"Shouldn't I?" I asked. I was feeling a bit…I don't know…weird. My hands were still holding the ends of the scarf. Without my permission, they began to pull Tomiko closer to me. I could feel that tugging again, an almost physical tugging, and it was bringing me and Tomiko together. My head was spinning, my pulse was tapping out a progressive bass line that thrummed throughout my whole body. I would've stopped myself somehow if Tomiko had given any sign of protest or dislike, but she didn't, and now we were close enough to feel each other's breath on our lips…

_DONG…! DONG…!_

I stopped. Tomiko stopped. We stared at each other, somewhat stunned. At least she looked stunned. I felt like I'd been hit by the bullet train. Right smack in the gut. And then I felt an indescribable sense of loss welling up inside me, like large tears, only I couldn't find the strength to shed them.

Tomiko's eyes had stopped smiling. "Ah…" she said, quietly. I didn't think that a single syllable could hold so much…sadness? I looked at her, confused, but she had recovered. "I guess…our date's over, ne?"

I swallowed past something in my throat. I tasted bile. "Sou…"

An awkward silence settled over us, a blanket of reality smothering the dreams fantasy had awakened. I took a deep breath to steady my nerves, then said, in as light a tone as I could manage, "Well, I'd better bring you to your dorm. It's a bit late to go back to Saitama, isn't it?"

She nodded. "But what about you?"

I shrugged. "I'll have someone fetch me. It's no big."

She nodded again, keeping oddly quiet.

As we walked towards Lillian U, I wondered why I was feeling so disappointed. The whole Cinderella date was just a one day thing, and I'd known that from the start. I held nothing against Tomiko; she'd been kind enough to put up with me the whole day, which had been undeniably one of the best days of my life. Maybe that's why I was so disappointed. It was over way too soon.

The walk to her dorm was over way too soon, as well. She fished out her keys and opened the door (I noted that she'd finally acquired the habit of locking it). Then she turned around and gave me a wan smile. "Thanks."

For once, I didn't quite know how to react. "Iya, it's nothing. Compared to what you've done for me today."

Tomiko shifted a little in her doorway. "Well…you take care going home. Okay?"

I nodded.

And then, because I couldn't take it anymore, and because I knew she'd given me a wonderful birthday present, I grabbed her cheeks, brushed my lips against her forehead, and then pulled her into a fierce hug. "Thank you," I muttered into her ear. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Her cheek felt warm against mine. For a moment, she didn't move.

And then I felt her arms go around my shoulders as she wordlessly returned my embrace. I sank into it, not wanting to let go, knowing I would eventually have to, and wishing that I could freeze Time and stay in that moment forever.

But the spell was broken, wasn't it? I sighed, then relinquished my hold on her. I gave her the best grin I could manage to dig up. "Well, goodnight."

Tomiko smiled. She took my hand, squeezed it, and said, "Goodnight. See you tomorrow."

I walked down the hall and back into the chilly streets. Nothing around me registered in my brain as I trusted my feet to lead me straight back home, until a familiar sight appeared in the distance, something that made me lift my drooping head and forced me to make a beeline for it. It was a thousand dazzling lights woven among trees that lined a manmade canal blazing with the reflection of those lights, surrounded by tall, dark buildings whose outlines were aflame with golden color. I went back to that place Tomiko had taken me, the familiar warmth of her eyes wrapping me in a reassuring embrace, and I stayed there, my bum parked on a solitary bench in the middle of that sparkling display, the hand-woven bracelet reminding me that nothing today had been a dream. I sat there and remembered all that had passed between us, until everything swam into a swirling, not-altogether-unpleasant mist in my mind.

-_Chapter Epilogue-_

_-Tomiko-_

"So, how did it go?" Rizu said, cradling her second mug of coffee. She was with Kei this time, and they had woken me up so they can have coffee.

"Us? We had fun," I replied, grinning at her evilly.

"Touche," Kei nudged Rizu, smiling tenderly. Rizu pushed back, a little too strongly, and poor Kei's bum and the seat cushion went their separate ways.

Laughing, Rizu pulled Kei back on her bum.

"Ah," she said, "So _that's_ how you're going to play it, huh?"

"Well, I'll leave it at that for now," I said. Truthfully, I wasn't quite sure how—or _what—_I could say about the whole thing. The date played out so much like some Christmas fantasy I had to glance quickly at my keitai to check the date. It glowed back '12.26', though it felt like it had been eons since that happened.

"Okay, okay," Rizu smiled. "But…"

"But..?"

"Tell me one thing at least."

I braced myself. "What one thing?"

"Is that scarf hers?" she asked, pointing to something on me. My hand flew to my neck. Apparently, I hadfallen asleep _still_ wearing the scarf. It was nice and soft around my neck, and it had a little of her scent on it, which was probably why I was a little more aware of my surroundings this morning. My body had apparently learned to adapt subconsciously.

"Yeah," I said simply.

"Sleeping with a scarf around your neck is kind of dangerous," Kei said with some concern. I shrugged it off. I still woke up, didn't I?

"Anyway, do you want to go with me tonight?" Rizu asked. "I'm going to watch Kei's band perform at Ex-Rink today."

"Kei's in a band?" I asked. Kei seemed to turn several shades redder.

"We-ell… she co-writes songs with the band's lead singer," Rizu said. "If she plays nice, though, they let her play the kazoo."

"Yeah, why not?" I said. "Which band is this?

"Poke-Poke Gunso," Kei replied. "I'm not really much help, but they're a good band."

"Well, anyway, we'll see you then, okay?" Rizu said, letting Kei help her to her feet. She smiled. "It's good that your date went well."

"Okay." I walked them to the door and waved them off.

And then my day began.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight: Chance Homecoming

_(I know it's been a long time since I updated, and I know that I might not have anyone watching out for it anymore, but here it is anyway. enjoy it if you still can. Thanks for sticking by it! EDIT: My story didn't upload properly last time, so I had to do everything on Notepad. --0 sorry for the mostly unreadable text! It's okay now, I think. )_

-_Tomiko_-

The New Year came in pretty quietly for me, with only the thunderous boom of the giant bell on the telly to tell me that it ever happened. Mom wasn't exactly a stickler for Japanese tradition, so we kind of skip the ritual greeting at my house. Ben and I did play badminton, though, and we ended up with inked-up faces. Guess half-breeds do suck at that kind of thing. Sei called me up to greet me personally, and we spent the first early hours of the new year doing—what else?—nothing but annoy each other to sleep.

I don't know if I should really take the first dream of the new year seriously, as mine was REALLY weird this year. I dreamt that I was slicing eggplants to make tempura, a huge mountain of them. I sliced with urgency, as if I were expecting a horde of people (eggplant enthusiasts, perhaps?) to come to dinner. Then, the door to my dorm room swung open with a bang, and Sei came walking in, looking angry, muttering something about too many visitors. And then I woke up. I felt a little embarrassed to be asking Rizu about what it meant (it DID imply something a little too domestic, after all), but she assured me that it was just a dream that reflected my familiarity with her. After all, Sei and I did spend a lot of time together the past year, I rationalized. It was only natural, I suppose. (Rizu also added that I had a lot of good luck in store this coming year, as I had dreamt of the third luckiest New Year thing to dream of—eggplants.)

At any rate, this year was starting out quite surreal.

I headed back out to Tokyo the next day, and in time too. I realized that my cupboard was entirely bare, save for a suspicious-looking can of adzuki beans in the back. Time to go shopping. I pulled on my jacket and ratty old jeans and opened the door to find Sei standing outside.

"Uwo you're early today. And On a Sunday, too," she smirked. "Where is the little kitten headed? Hot date?" she winked.

I smirked right back. "Pray tell, what kind of date would I pick up in these clothes?" I asked.

"We-ell, I've always maintained that you'd look hot even if you went out in a dirty old sack," Sei joked. "But seriously, where are you headed?"

"To the supermarket. Thanks to your bottomless pit—and yours, too," I said to Rizu, who peered at us blearily from behind her door, "I am down to the last of my rations. Seriously, you'd think I was feeding a family of four," I said.

Sei actually managed to look a bit embarrassed. "We HAVE been popping on over quite a bit, ne?" She glared at Rizu, who was blankly nibbling on a seaweed rice cracker. "You could at least look guilty while eating one of her snacks, you know."

"I don't account for at least seventy percent of Tomiko's food expenses, you know," Rizu retorted around a mouthful of cracker.

"I do NOT!"

"You do too. I computed."

Sei narrowed her eyes at the unflinching Rizu and turned to me. "Ja, let me go to the supermarket with you. And I'll give you my share for food. I might as well pay for some—"

"Seventy percent."

"Urusai, Rizu."

Rizu looked at me. "Can I trouble you to buy me some Home Pies, too?" she asked sweetly.

"Alright, Rizu," I said.

"And can we have yose-nabe this week? Kei's been feeling under the weather lately," she added.

Sei stuck out her tongue at Rizu and took my arm. "Let's go. She'll have planned the entire week's menu if we don't go now." Taking me by the arm, we set off for the supermarket.

We talked about how we spent our short break from school. As it turned out, Sei spent it alone—again. I wondered whether or not it was a good idea if I suggested that she come over to Saitama next year—or any time, for that matter—if she ever felt like company.

The whoosh of the sliding doors tickled my cheeks as we entered the supermarket. I didn't usually go to this gigantic foodmart to replenish stock, as there were almost twenty convenience stores littered throughout Lillian U's vicinity; but since the cupboard was quite literally bare, I needed to buy in bulk. Sort of.

We got our cart and pushed it towards the aisles. I was going over my mental shopping list when I heard someone exclaim "Ah, Sei-sama!" behind us. Turning around, I saw a bevy of young ladies, led by this one with beribboned pigtails, whose expressive face seemed to betray surprise.  
"Ah, Yumi-chan?" Sei chuckled, wrapping her up in a hug.

-_Sei_-

What a pleasant surprise.

I knew that come the New Year I'd be running into the Yamayurikai, but I was expecting to happen upon them in pairs. You know, like Sachiko and Yumi one day, Rei and Yoshino the next, or Yumi and Yoshino, since those two are practically best friends, or Shimako and her petit soeur, Noriko, whom I've heard of but never met. Or even in triplets, like Yumi, Yoshino, and Shimako. I never expected to run into the whole enchilada all at once, and certainly not at my instigation. (Of course I always made sure I'd run into any of them on my own terms. I never thought I'd be caught unawares.)

"Sei-sama! Wow, I never thought we'd run into you here!" Yumi squealed. As she went on to babble about how delightful it was to bump into me, I noted the other members of the Yamayurikai. Sachiko, Yumi's Onee-sama, had her usual pained grimace that she was trying to goad into a smile—she hated it whenever I was, in her opinion, being overly affectionate to Yumi. Behind her were Rei and Yoshino. Neither one had really changed much, though I thought I detected a hint of speculation in dear little Yoshino's eyes. I always secretly believed that her heart surgeon somehow messed up and had reconnected the artery leading to her brain into something else entirely, some unknown gland or something. The girl was unpredictable. And then, right next to them, my own former petit soeur, Shimako. She looked as serene and happy as ever. A shorter, dark-haired young girl stood next to her, Noriko, I presumed. Mild-looking enough, but a real spitfire when provoked, or so I've heard. Definitely a good match for Shimako.

And trailing at the back were none other than Youko and Eriko, the two other former Roses. Oho, so something was up. And it was a Yamayurikai thing, too. They were out in full force, which could only mean—

"And here we thought we'd surprise you!" Yumi finished, finally managing to wriggle out of my hug.

I quirked a brow. "Surprise me with what, pray tell?"

Yumi twinkled. "A belated New Year's party at your house!"

I blinked. Very few things surprised me, and this was one of them. But then, I should have expected it, having skipped out on the usual Yamayurikai New Year's party. "Well, well, congratulations! I AM surprised." I grinned.

Yumi giggled. Then she noticed Tomiko, who had kept very quiet and was, I think, trying desperately to hide behind me. "Ah, Sei-sama, won't you introduce your friend to us?"

I laughed. "With you being so chatty, I hadn't found the proper opening."

"Since when were you proper, Sei?" Eriko said, suppressing a grin.

"Should I grace that with an answer?" I retorted lightly. "Everyone, this is Harada Tomiko, Fine Arts Student extraordinaire and a good friend. Tomiko, this is everyone." I introduced her formally to all the members of the Yamayurikai.

Tomiko greeted each one politely, if a little uncertainly. I watched everyone's faces; I could sense a certain something in the air, something made up of a huge amount of curiosity, and I wanted to see how Yumi and the others were taking to Tomiko. Yumi's face was easy to read, she was genuinely happy and excited to meet a new friend, as was Shimako. Yoshino was practically champing at the bit to do more than just introduce herself; I was betting she wanted to ask a few questions. Sachiko's expression was as unreadable as ever, and Rei was quietly assessing my blue-eyed companion much as she would have a fellow Yamayurikai's new petit soeur. Old habits die hard.

Speaking of old habits…

A quick glance at my two old buddies confirmed what I knew in my gut. Eriko was smiling in her usual way, which meant that she was probably thinking of cooking up some schemes to get two people together—the two people in question being none other than Tomiko and yours truly. Youko was almost as unreadable as Sachiko, but I knew that sooner or later she'd start meddling. I'm no fool, and I'm not so egotistical as to be unable to see through other people's eyes. I was out with a girl on a Sunday morning, at the supermarket. It was domesticated and sweet, which smacked of coupledom.

But hold on. I couldn't quite read what was going on in Youko's head about me, but there was something a little off about her. Eriko had her usual vagueness, but where was the usual Chinensis all-knowing smile?

Now that was interesting.

"Tomiko-san, you're invited to celebrate with us, too," Yumi was saying. She was too polite to tug on Tomiko's arm, but she seemed excited enough to press the issue. "Please?"

Tomiko gave her a nervous smile. "But I wasn't a part of the…err…well, your student council; I didn't even attend Lillian, so I'd probably just bother you…"

"Not in the least," Sachiko said with quiet assurance. "We would all be very happy if you would join us."

-_Tomiko_-

So there I was, being pulled along haphazardly to the Satou residence. I didn't know if I felt comfortable intruding on what seemed to be a reunion of old high school friends, but I was happy to find out that Sei had a good circle of friends about her before she went to college. I was never really that lucky. Well, up until now.

Yumi was, in a word, cute. There was just no other way to describe her. I could see why she was the object of Sei's warped affection then. Approachable, funny, expressive, and honest, that's what she was. I took to her like a fish to water. Shimako was no exception, though standing next to her made me feel like a gawky, clumsy sunflower next to a delicate white rose. There was something about her that made me a little embarrassed to be in my ratty old jeans and crumbling sneakers. Her petit soeur Noriko was nice as well, if a little wary in general. I guess she felt very protective of her onee-sama, and I allowed myself to be entertained by thoughts of a Noriko replete with com radio and black suit, following Shimako around and murmuring reports into her right sleeve. She really did have a bodyguard aura.

Rei and Yoshino were well, Rei and Yoshino. There was something about them that kept out the rest of the world, like they were wrapped up in a semi-permeable bubble that only they inhabit. But they were nice, and Yoshino in particular seemed pretty interested in what I do. How that could fare for me today, I wasn't really sure. Rei on the other hand was a perfect complement to Yoshino's spunk, what with her quiet, gentle ways of handling her cousin. They were two pieces of a puzzle that fit no other.

Now, Yumi's onee-sama, Sachiko, was something else entirely. I was reminded of the delicate paintings depicting the Tale Of Genji in a museum I saw before. She carried herself much like Lady Murasaki herself, well-heeled, cordial, if a bit grave. Somehow, I doubted if she really did go into hysterical fits like Sei claimed she was liable to do. I felt drawn to her, but there was also something that pushed you away, much like a force field she bent to her will. I was not quite sure what to make of this girl.

Eriko and Youko, Sei's co-, ah, Roses, were a little intimidating, I had to admit. I have heard Sei's stories of their old antics and such, but I didn't expect to meet such proper young ladies. They made Sei look like, well, a boy. If anyone made me feel clumsy and gawky more than Shimako, it would have had to be them. I felt whatever little self-confidence quiver as I tried hard to slow my usual gait down to a strolling pace. I might have not cared in Hell if they had been just some girls from a snooty private school, but somehow…

I don't know. I just might want them to like me.

Yumi and Yoshino were walking alongside me on either arm, pelting me with one question after another. They seemed genuinely interested in me, and Yoshino in particular kept commenting on my appearance.

"It's pretty novel to see someone from another country speak Japanese like a native!" Yoshino exclaimed.

I had to sweatdrop. "Ah, I was born here, so…"

"Are? So you're really Japanese?"

"Yes, I suppose."

"Uso!" her eyes widened in disbelief. "You look like you popped out of a Hans Christian Andersen book!"

I wasn't exactly sure if that was a compliment or not. Fortunately, Yumi saved me from having to explain the complexities of my nativity by saying, "Oh look, we're almost at Sei-sama's house!"

…Sei-sama?

Now at that I had to say "Uso!" The small me in my head was down on the pavement, rolling around in laughter and slapping her palm repeatedly on the sidewalk. If only Rizu were around to hear THAT!

"You call her 'Sei-sama'?" I asked.

Yumi seemed a bit surprised at the question. "Ah, hai! When she was still Rosa Gigantea I called her 'Rosa Gigantea'."

…Say what? Rosa Gigantea? More like Rosa Godzilla if you asked me. I kept these opinions to myself for the time being, but I tucked away all this information for ammo later.

"I hope she wasn't too much trouble," Yumi started. "I mean, Sei-sama would seem a little too mischievous for her own good, but she's actually a nice person. She means well."

"Ah, yes," I said, smiling. "She has been a good friend."

"That's why I think Tomiko-sama should be up there with Shimako! They're both amazing people!" Yoshino started.

… Tomiko-sama? Whaaaaaaat?

"Ano," I turned to the pigtailed girl in braids, "You don't have to call me 'sama', Yoshino-chan."

"It's okay," she said brightly. "I actually think you earned it."

This was going to be a long day.

_-Sei-_

We arrived at my house just in time for lunch. Everyone immediately volunteered to help in the kitchen. By this time, my tales of Tomiko's cooking had gotten the others very curious, and they all wanted to try some of the 'famous dishes that had gotten Sei-sama up so early on a Sunday', a phrase Yoshino had coined, which made me wince inside in a bad way. The girl was definitely forming some opinions. Dangerous opinions. I didn't usually care about what other people thought but for one thing, these were all my friends, and for another, I didn't want them to have a bad opinion of Tomiko, or for Tomiko to have a poor opinion of them. I was glad to see that Yumi and Yoshino were near-literally hanging onto her, and that they were having fun. Sachiko and Rei were taking out pots and pans, and Eriko and Youko were perusing the fridge. Noriko was slowly but surely making her way towards Yumi, Yoshino, and Tomiko.

I felt someone standing next to me.

Shimako.

"Onee-sama," she said, by way of greeting.

"Shimako," I grinned. "How are things? Maybe I shouldn't even ask." I glanced back at Noriko, who was now deep in conversation with Tomiko, Yumi, and Yoshino. Tomiko was starting to chop some things into oblivion. "From what I've heard so far, I think you and Noriko complement each other."

Shimako lowered her eyes slightly and smiled. I think she realized that I still kept tabs on her somehow. Of course I would. Thanks in part to Yumi, I knew almost everything going on at Lillian High. Soon, Sachiko and Rei would graduate, and Yumi and Yoshino would take over as the new Rosas Chinensis and Foetida. "Are you going to continue as Rosa Gigantea, Shimako?"

"If doing so will allow me to help out as much as I can, and to the best of my abilities, then yes, I believe I will."

Her reply pleased me. Shimako had always been a strong person. She just needed to realize it. "Well, then, good luck." I smiled. "I hope you will always be happy."

Shimako's face lit up, and she returned the smile. "Onee-sama…I hope you will always be happy as well."

Something about the way she said it made me pause. I studied her face for a moment, trying to figure out what she meant, and then, somehow, I just knew. She knew. I was happy where I was right now, and if that involved Tomiko being a part of my life, then Shimako would accept without question, and be glad for it as well.

Understanding passed between us, and I nodded.

"Thank you," I said.

Shimako smiled. "I'd better go help out now."

"Oi, Sei," Tomiko called over her shoulder, "I know this is your house, but don't you think you should be helping out, too? Don't let your friends do all the work for you!"

I grinned. About time she said something. "Hai, hai."

We finally settled down to lunch. It was worth the wait and the effort spent making it. I don't know what Tomiko called it, but it was heavenly, and everyone else agreed. For the first fifteen minutes, no one spoke. The first order of business was to stuff our faces, and that we did, some with less grace than others.

I watched Tomiko with some amusement. The girl was definitely not herself today. Usually she tucked into her meals with enthusiasm, but this time she was consciously practicing some self-control, making sure that she wasn't being rude or jostling the two people sitting next to her, which, of course, happened to be Yumi and Yoshino. Those two were like sea barnacles that had latched onto a strangely appealing piece of driftwood. I was glad that they'd taken an immediate liking to her, and were cheerfully regaling her with stories of Lillian—I didn't know if it was a good or a bad thing that most of their anecdotes included me. Tomiko certainly snickered at several of them, especially the one that had me summoned so dramatically to the discipline office because everyone thought I'd written a controversial book. And then she started telling them about all of my antics since she met me, which had most of them giggling. Shimako seemed very amused. The more prim and proper ones—and by this I single out Sachiko—didn't say anything, only let me know by expression that I'd been a very naughty rascal.

At this point I started to worry a little bit about Youko. I didn't know if a year studying law did anything to change someone's personality, but hers was certainly more subdued than I remembered. By this time she would've inserted a lecture or two—or even three—about a few things that I'd done or said, but she remained unusually quiet. As Tomiko started talking about her Fine Arts course and Rizu, I observed my old friend a little more closely. She was listening all right, but never really offered to comment or even crack a joke in her own fashion, which wasn't like her at all, and I didn't hear a single smart remark from her. Come to think of it, I hadn't heard much at all since we met in the supermarket. It was mostly Eriko doing the commenting and witty repartee—vague Eriko—and it was also old Dekochin who kept teasing me about my behavior and die-hard habits. There were times when I caught Eriko laying a light hand on Youko's wrist, to which Youko would respond with a slight jerk, as if she'd been miles away the whole time and Eriko was reminding her of where she was. Now that wasn't like her at all.

I looked around for confirmation. Sachiko was being very polite, engaging in the conversation and such, but from time to time she'd glance toward her Onee-sama, and a very slight but worried frown would mark her brow. Ah, so Sachiko didn't know what was troubling Youko. Curiouser and curiouser.

So I turned to the only other person who would know. Eriko caught my gaze. She must have read my unspoken question quite clearly because she gave me a look, one that said that I would simply have to get it from the horse's mouth. (It's not a pretty picture to have, believe me, but it was funny.)

I waited until lunch was safely over, and then I stood up. "Well, I think I should clean up."

Everyone else stood up, too. Damn Lillian and strict, proper upbringing. "We'll help!" Yumi declared with her usual cheerfulness.

Luckily Eriko intervened. For once, she was being useful. "I think this will be a job for the three old ladies, don't you agree, Sei?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," I told her. "I see two old ladies…"

"And one dirty old man," Tomiko said before she could stop herself. I nearly laughed at the horror on her face the second the words left her mouth. "Err…I mean…"

"Oh, don't apologize," Eriko assured her warmly. "It's not like we didn't know. Well, Sei, Youko, let's clean up. We'll meet with you in the living room."

The tone was unmistakably a dismissal, and from a former Rosa. No one thought to challenge or question. As the Yamayurikai piled out of the room, I patted Tomiko comfortingly on the cheek. "Don't worry. They won't eat you. Oh, Yoshino will probably nibble a bit, and Sachiko might bite, but they won't eat you."

Tomiko glared at me. "I hope you don't mean that literally."

I grinned. Then I ostensibly went about clearing the table.

The moment I stepped into the kitchen, however, it was Youko who sprung the trap first. "Sei," she began, in that all-too familiar tone of voice, "what are you doing?"

"Cleaning up, as you can see," I replied, groaning inwardly. The blade was hidden within its case, true, but that did not mean that the blade was not sharp. Subdued as she may have appeared, Youko hadn't lost her wits.

"That isn't what I see," she said stubbornly. "You're making a mess of this, you know."

I sighed. "What exactly are we talking about here, Youko? I thought that studying law would help you get straight to the point on certain matters, but apparently—"

"On the contrary, sometimes you have to do a little running around in order to make all the facts appear." Youko gave me a steady look. "I suppose old habits do die hard. You're leading that poor girl around by the nose."

I put the dirty dishes in the sink and turned on the tap. "You're not supposed to make open accusations unless you have all the evidence." I gave her a tight little grin. "Or am I watching too much television?"

Youko closed her eyes and sighed. The patented Mizuno long-suffering pose, a technique designed to drive a saint mad. "You're doing the exact same thing you did in highschool. Grow up, Sei. Tomiko has feelings, and she seems to be very taken with you—"

"You can tell that from all the sarcastic jabs she's taken at me? You're quite sensitive."

"—and you'll hurt her if you keep this up. The two of you are very close, obviously, and you have a chance at happiness here—"

"I'm already happy with the way things are."

"—but if you keep her waiting too long she'll tire of it, and this time, Sei, you stand to lose too much."

I turned and faced Youko. "And what makes you think she's waiting?"

Youko lifted a single brow. "I don't think, I know."

I was getting exasperated. "And how do you know this, when you haven't been around?"

"Women's intuition," Eriko cut in amicably, sounding very entertained. "We don't blame you if you don't see things the way we do, Sei, you're only about one-third of a woman."

"Et tu, Eriko?"

Eriko gracefully inclined her head. "Yes, me, too. Besides, Sei, I believe you are in error. Youko did get straight to the point, instead of beating around the bush, as you have accused her of doing."

I smiled tightly. Things weren't going well here. Youko's meddling was already more than enough for one person to deal with, throw Eriko into the mix and you have a force of nature. The two had managed to successfully insert Shimako into my life—not that I've ever regretted taking her as my petit soeur—but the point of the fact was that they meddled. If you ignored their direct approach, they'll go round your back. At least Eriko was fickle; she'd help you meddle, but I doubted she would ever initiate anything. It was Youko who did a lot of the manipulating. "All right," I said, "I might've contradicted myself there, but for once, you two, can't you try a different approach?"

"You wouldn't have listened to any other," Youko said pointedly. "Sei, for goodness' sake, if you have feelings for this girl—"

"You're assuming too much," I cut in. "Stop."

Eriko shook her head, went over to the sink, and did some actual washing. Youko and I remained at a standoff. She wouldn't back off or let up until she wrung a decision out of me, and it had better be the decision she wanted me to pick.

"First of all," I said, losing my good humor, "you said 'IF' I had feelings for Tomiko. IF," I repeated, to emphasize my point. "How the hell am I supposed to figure that out if I have you breathing down my neck, forcing me to think about it? That's your problem; you're always analyzing everything instead of just letting things flow, always calculating your next move, and the move after that, trying to predict all the outcomes. Life isn't just about statistics, Youko."

"The exact opposite isn't the best way to go about it either, Sei," she retorted, with a little more heat than I expected. There was a bite to her tone that I'd never heard before. Something happened then; it was like stepping back from yourself and observing everything around you while your double kept itself immersed in what was going on. I looked at Youko and saw dark circles under her eyes, and a tiredness about her face that spoke of an ongoing struggle. I heard beyond the frustration in her voice, beyond it was a desperate longing. "If you just sit back and let all of this go, there's a chance it will go in a direction you will come to regret," she was saying, but she wasn't quite looking at me anymore, her eyes had fixed on something else, a point behind me, or beside me, or someplace far away.

"There's a chance that this friendship you have with her will take itself away from you. If you have feelings for her, then be honest about it and tell her." She bit her lip. "You've never had a problem with speaking your mind."

The realization struck me just as Eriko switched off the faucet. I suddenly knew, somehow and with all certainty, why Youko was acting strangely. A terrible smile was spreading across my face like bad acne.

"Youko," I said, taking a step toward her. "You're in love, aren't you?"

Her gaze snapped back to mine, and something akin to horror flashed across her face. "What?"

I grinned. "You are! You weren't just talking to me, you were talking to yourself!"

Eriko was wiping the dishes off and humming a nameless tune behind me, but I could feel her smile as surely as I could feel waves of alarm coming off of Youko like a tsunami. Youko's mouth opened, closed, opened, and closed again.

I slapped my thigh in triumph. "I didn't think this day would come. So, Youko, spill. Who's the lucky guy? Or is it a girl?"

Youko's lips pressed together in a firm line.

"Girl," Eriko supplied quietly from behind me.

Youko stared at her. "Eriko!"

"Oh, Youko, it would have come out sooner or later," Eriko calmly told her.

"And Dekochin knows? How come she knows and I don't?" I demanded.

Eriko sniffed. "Well, it's not like you've expressed any real interest in our lives, you know, with you being too busy with Tomiko."

"Don't change the subject, Eriko, you'll give Youko ammunition. Besides," I added, turning back to Youko, who had backed up against one of the kitchen counters. "I think the tables have turned for now, and it's MY turn to meddle. I can meddle every once in a while, can't I, Youko?" Feeling unjustifiably superior, I pressed on. "So, tell me everything."

I didn't think she'd surrender. At least, not so quickly. But she did. Her shoulders sagged, and her expression along with them. When she spoke, she sounded defeated. "There's nothing to tell. Nothing is going on, and I think nothing will, ever."

That took me by surprise. I'd never known Youko to act like this. No matter how sad she must have been at times in highschool, she never really let on. "What, don't tell me you're giving up just like that," I began.

Youko gave me a tired little smile. "You can't give up on something you haven't really started on, can you?"

"Ho, so you're not even going to try? Why's that?"

She kept quiet.

"It's because the girl in question has a girlfriend," Eriko said helpfully, stacking the dishes neatly atop a shelf.

"Eriko!" Youko exclaimed.

Eriko shrugged. "It's true, isn't it?"

Youko frowned at her. "Why don't you go ahead and tell her everything then, since you seem so intent on doing so?"

Eriko smiled demurely. "Oh, but it's not really my story to tell. I'm just…hmm…prompting whenever the need for it arises. Other than that, Youko, I'm just going to stand here and play referee."

Youko sighed. "Well, there you have it, Sei. There's really nothing I can do about it. I'm not the kind of person who would break up a couple just because I happened to fancy one of them. And besides," she added, sounding even more tired than before, "even if she didn't have someone, it would probably still not work out."

I clucked disapprovingly. "So negative," I said, keeping my tone light and friendly. It was the least I could do; Youko had already done something she'd never done before: talk about herself and her own problems. "I find it hard to believe that you, the former Rosa Chinensis who kept everything together and acted as our unspoken but undisputed leader, would simply let this potential for happiness slip by."

Youko gave me a long, hard look which softened after a while. "It just won't," she said at last, with a slight shrug. "Going into details isn't going to help, so please, can we drop the subject?"

I grinned crookedly at her. She never was one to squirm, and she was pretty good at keeping her dignity intact. "Actually, we could, but I don't want to drop the subject just yet. You can tell me I'm cruel and unfeeling, but I keep remembering all the times you meddled in my life, and I'm not about to give up the chance to return the favor. Besides," I added, before her expression could turn flinty again, "you never know, some good might come out of it. My meddling, I mean."

Youko covered her face with one hand. "When did that ever happen? I remember when Yumi-chan fainted because you tricked her into believing they needed to have some kind of presentation for us before we graduated."

I laughed. "Hey, there wasn't any permanent damage, and we all got a good laugh out of their performance. Even Sachiko was laughing."

She smiled. "Fine, you have a point, but really, Sei, what good will come out of my telling you anything about my problems?"

"We don't know, but conversely, what harm can possibly come out of it?"

Eriko chuckled. "Good one, Sei."

Youko sighed. "Whose side are you on, Eriko?"

"Mine, apparently," I said smugly. "Since you're being so stubborn about it, I'll ask her."

"No, don't."

"Then tell me why you think this won't work out."

When Youko hesitated—again—Eriko smiled. "Because this person is a rockstar."

I didn't think anything could surprise me anymore, but I was wrong. I felt my eyes bulge out of their sockets. "Holy crap! Really?" I grinned widely at Youko, who seemed unnaturally red. "You're in love with a rockstar?? How in the blue hell did that happen?"

"It—it just did," Youko stuttered out. She was clearly out of her element. "And—and stop grinning like that."

"I can't help it. You, Mizuno Youko, the epitome of class, elegance, and grace, are in love with a guitar-smashing, booze-swinging, bad-ass rockstar. You expect me to get over that one in the space of what, five seconds?"

"She doesn't smash guitars," Youko said, a tad defensively.

"Ah, but she does swing booze and is a bad-ass?"

Now she looked irritated. "Can we stop this now? You've said it yourself; you can't quite picture me being with someone so outrageously different. And you're right, Sei. She and I are from two different worlds, and regardless of what I feel, it's not going to work out."

I slapped my forehead. "There you go again! Always over-analyzing, always assuming. Didn't they teach you anything in formal logic? Youko, does this person even know how you feel about her?"

She seemed horrified at the idea. "No, of course not."

"Well, there's your problem. Maybe if you said something—"

"If I said anything, I would be laughed at and sent packing," she cut in, bitterly. "Who would believe it? I'm supposed to be a serious, self-composed, quiet law student, while she's a rough, loud, carefree rocker who performs almost every night for an equally rough, loud crowd." She shook her head. "It's not going to happen."

She looked so dejected, I hadn't the heart to say anything sarcastic. It made me feel bad; Youko usually had good advice to give, and she'd give it to you free-of-charge, and even if she did do stuff behind my back, she did do so out of concern. It took your free will out of the equation, but then I suppose I was just too stubborn to see what was good for me sometimes.

My thoughts returned to Tomiko.

Was this one of those times, too? Was I too stubborn to see where this was leading? Good God, was Youko right on this one, too, even though she hadn't been around to witness it all?

I was having too many realizations all at once. Focus, Sei…

Right. Youko's problem. I shook my head slightly to clear it, then put on my sternest face, if that were at all possible. "Youko…isn't it about time you took your own advice?"

She just looked at me. She looked miserable. "You of all people know that it doesn't work that way," she said quietly.

"It can," I insisted. "If I make you a deal…will you agree to your end of it?"

Youko's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What deal?"

I was going to spill some guts here. I sighed and folded my arms over my chest. "Listen…I didn't want another Shiori. And I don't want another Shimako. Meaning I don't want to go stumbling in, baring my feelings, and then just get hurt again. And I don't want to have things manipulated for me, end up with someone who's good to me but at the same time end up being distant with her." I pursed my lips, wondering how to best say it. "I think…you want me to go all out and say something. But you don't know Tomiko the way I do. I think that means the decision to say anything—or nothing at all—rests with me and me alone. I'll decide if and when to tell her. But, when that does happen—when I think the time is right…I promise you, you meddler, that I will be honest about it."

Youko stared at me for a good, long moment. Then I recognized the familiar, all-knowing, triumphant little smile she usually reserved for occasions like this. I allowed her a moment, then raised a finger and wagged it in front of her nose.

"ON the condition," I said, emphasizing each word, "that you do exactly the same thing."

The smile vanished, and she gave me an incredulous look.

Eriko giggled from behind me.

I doubt any artist could've captured the conflicting thoughts I could glimpse behind Youko's eyes. I was going to follow her advice, but only if she would do the same if the opportunity—or situation—ever presented itself. Yikes, right?

"You can't keep fighting for everyone else's happiness, Youko," I said, shrugging. "Sooner or later, you have to fight for your own."

She blinked. Her brow furrowed. And then she seemed to relax, slightly. Something that looked suspiciously like a faint blush appeared on her cheeks. "You know…" she said thoughtfully, her eyes distant, "she said exactly the same thing to me."

"Well, thank goodness you picked someone smart," I retorted, grinning. "What's her name?"

Her gaze snapped back to me, focused. "Oh, don't push it, Sei, you already know too much."

Eriko let out a startled exclamation, and a can of adzuki beans fell to the floor with a sharp clatter. "Oops," she said. "Sorry. I got bored and started examining your cupboards. Do you know that that can is expired?"

I scratched my head, then bent over and picked it up. Somehow the can managed to look marginally guilty. I threw it into the garbage can, then turned back to Eriko and Youko. Youko was giving Eriko another sour look, and Eriko was smiling sweetly back at her. Hm, did I miss something here?

I cleared my throat. "Well, Youko?"

Youko gave me a muted glare. "The others are probably wondering why we're taking so long. I propose we join them now."

And with that, she turned on her heel and left the kitchen.

I smirked. "Did I really go too far?" I asked Eriko.

Eriko laughed and gave me an affectionate pat on the arm. "No. Youko just isn't used to being on the receiving end of advice, is all. You said what she needed to hear, even if it wasn't necessarily what she wanted to hear. Don't worry, Sei, you did very well."

Finally.

I sighed. "I but live to serve. Come on, Eriko. Let's not keep everyone waiting."

-_Tomiko_-

We were well into our game of cards when Youko, Eriko and Sei joined in from the kitchen. There was something a little too triumphant in the way that Sei smiled at me as she sat down, something that reeked of smugness.

"So, what have we missed so far?" she asked.

I decided to shrug it off and replied, "Well, we were playing Doubt by teams."

"Teams? Teams of what?" she asked.

"We were playing by rose family!" Yumi chimed in. "Onee-sama, Youko-sama and I are in one team."

Yoshino volunteered, "Rei-chan and I are in one team, too." There was a twinkle in her eye when she looked at me and Sei. "Well, since Tomiko-sama is Sei-sama's guest, we piled her along with Shimako and Noriko. She's practically in the Gigantea family, anyway."

I didn't quite know what to make of Yoshino's last statement, but Sei practically beamed. "Well, she's as smart as a Gigantea, that much I know." She grinned at me.

I needed to segue the conversation somewhere else. "Ne, Yoshino, didn't you tell me you liked rock music, too?" I asked.

Yoshino brightened. "I love it! It had always been my dream to attend a music event, like Super Live, and ever since I had surgery, I've been egging Rei-chan to take me," she said brightly, slipping a little pout Rei's way. Poor Rei apparently had no interest in it.

The game went on around us as Yoshino and I carried on our conversation. She was into most of the bands I liked, as it turned out, and had an in-depth understanding of each band's musical style, which I found rather surprising.

"There's a new band I'm currently interested in," she said, poring over her cards. "They've got quite a diverse style, and I heard that they use the patterns of classical pieces to orchestrate their songs."

"Oh, I think I've heard about them," I said, looking over Sei's shoulder and picking out a card. "I think their lead singer sings very strangely for a girl."

Yoshino looked indignant. "Azuki Matsubara's voice is a refreshing change from all the female idols who dip their fingers into rock," she defended. "It's nice and strong, like her personality, or so they say."

I was about to answer when the slippery flutter of cards spilling onto the floor broke my rhythm—and concentration. Youko-san apparently had dropped all her cards, and was scrambling to collect them. She was mumbling some apologies and assents to go on when I glanced at Sei. The bastard was grinning widely from ear to ear, much like the Cheshire cat in the Disney movie, which made me wonder what transpired in the kitchen in the first place. Whatever it was, it probably was about Youko and rock bands. I sighed. Sei should learn to keep her nose out of her friends' business.

We played cards long into the evening, and the small, high-tech electric clock in the Satou living room chimed sonorously.

"Uwo!" Yumi looked up surprisedly. "It's already ten o'clock?!"

True enough, the little digital face was blinking back 10:00 from its transparent display.

"I suppose I should be thinking of bedding-down arrangements, eh?" Sei drawled, stretching languidly as she stood up. "Excuse me, but I have to talk to Shouko about getting the rooms ready."

Eriko looked up from her (rather large) hand of cards. "You don't have to worry about me," she piped up. "Yamanobe's picking me up," she continued rather proudly.

Sei raised an eyebrow. "Ho? So you and the bear are getting on well, aren't you?" she mused. She looked straight into Youko's eyes, a smile playing on her lips. "I suppose you are getting picked up as well, ne?"

Youko stood up and brushed her skirts down. "No, Sei," she said. "What I am is taking a train back to Yokohama. I have to get ready for some exams on Tuesday."

"Oh, come on, Youko," Sei pleaded, a little puppyish look on her face. "I'm pretty sure a straight-A student like you could make some concessions for old time's sake."

"As much as I'd like to stay, Sei, I better get back and start brushing up," she replied, lifting her bag gently off the coffee table and brushing off imaginary dust bunnies. "We're in college now. We have to take some things a little more seriously."

Sei's look turned from one of disappointment to one of speculation. Not a good sign.

"Are? Could it be… that you're going to take it seriously?" Sei mused, an impish little grin spreading on her lips like a bad rash.

"What is 'it'?" Yumi asked out loud. Sachiko shushed her gently.

Youko sighed. "No, this is nothing like that, okay? So keep your nose out of it."

"What is 'that'?" Yoshino asked Rei, who seemed to want to melt into the floor or blend into the wall. What I found most amusing of all, though, was that Shimako and Noriko did not seem to want any part of the mysteriously sordid exchange between the two Roses. They were simply huddled close together, watching the whole exchange with a look on their faces that could not be anything else than amusement. Me? I was just waiting for Youko-san and Sei to grab each other's throats and start throttling.

Sei was grinning brightly now, and I could have sworn I saw Youko turn several shades redder. "Sou ka? Ja, just tell me how everything goes, ne?" she said with a wink. "I'll get your coat, and Eriko's too. You might as well take her to the station, Eriko."

"Well, I was going to offer," Eriko smiled mysteriously, "but since you have spared me the embarrassment of doing so, yes, I shall take her to the station."  
Sei directed her grin to Eriko now. "Good girl. Now at least they can't say we've never agreed on anything, you mastodon."

"It's hypsilophodon, actually…"

"Hypsi-what?"

"Hypsilophodon."

"Just WHAT is that?" Sei asked laughingly, grabbing their coats off the hooks by the door. "You know what, never mind, explain some other time. I won't remember at this point," she chuckled. What exactly she found funny eluded me, but I wasn't going to ask any questions until much later.

"We're going to have to go home too, Sei-sama," Rei said, sounding almost relieved. "Our parents are picking us up here on the way to Hakone."

"Oh, all right," Sei said, sounding mock-resigned. "So, who else is leaving?" she said, turning to us.

"We aren't," Yumi said, taking her Onee-sama's hand.

Sachiko nodded. "We will just leave early tomorrow. I hope we aren't imposing."

Sei grinned. "Of course not! Which reminds me, there's a bottle of shouchu in the fridge with our names on it. We can drink in the New Year, and spend the rest of the night singing karaoke!"

"Well, I think I'll pass," I said, brushing off my jeans and stretching a bit. "I should start walking if I want to make it back to Lillian U by eleven."

"Aw, Tonkoneko, stay! It's not like you'd have anything to do in school tomorrow," Sei pleaded.

"But I DO, Sei," I said, feeling a bit exasperated. "I have some projects that I really need to start. And besides, you only have two guest rooms, and with four guests, where will I stay?"

I knew I had dug a grave for myself as Sei's smile grew a tad sly. "In MY room, of course. Do you think I'd have it any other way?" Her eyes twinkled.

"Okay," I sighed, picking up my slingbag. "That gives me even MORE reason to start walking."

"Oh, come on!" Sei begged, clamping onto one of my pants legs. "I won't do anything to you you won't like, and even if I did, I'm pretty sure you can scream loud enough for at least one of the girls to come a-running!"

"Some Onee-sama you're turning out to be," I shot back. "Don't you have any shame for your petit soeur? She IS still here, you know, and you're acting like that!" I tried prying her off my leg, but despite her lankiness, Sei WAS kind of strong. My thoughts hearkened back to Yumi's story about her pushing back this guy, Sachiko's fiancé or some such bastard, as poor Sachiko escaped him. She was tiring me out by grappling with my leg, and she knew it. Her little triumphant smile was forming—again—on her lips, and I let go. I WAS getting a bit sleepy.

"Fine, fine!" I exclaimed, throwing both hands up in the air. "I'll stay. But try pulling anything, Satou, and I'll throw YOU out of your own room. Capisce?"

"Okay, okay, I promise."

I settled back down and muttered some apologies to the other girls for my behavior. Sachiko surprisingly looked very amused as she gracefully denied that I did anything wrong, and Shimako and Noriko were deep in conversation about something. Yumi plopped down next to me and started talking to me about ukiyo-e, and I shot Sei one last nasty look and smiled at Yumi.

When bedtime rolled around, I asked Shouko for a futon to spread on Sei's floor.

Shouko shook her head apologetically. "Ah, sorry, Tomiko-sama, but we don't have any more left for you. It's a full house tonight, I'm afraid…"

"How about a comforter? A blanket? A very large pillowcase?" I asked. Sei's bed could fit two, but only if you put one atop the other. NO WAY was I doing that.

"Hmm," Shouko said noncommittally. "I'll go check downstairs. But for the time being, Tomiko-sama, please make yourself comfortable on the bed." She smiled apologetically again and went out the door.

I sighed and sat down on the bed. Sei's headboard had a shelf filled with very interesting books, and having picked one out, I cracked it open and started to read.

Before I knew it, Sei was lying next to me on her bed, and poking my nose with her finger.

"Oi," she said. "You're dozing off." She propped up her head on her hand. "Why don't you get settled here?"

I rubbed my eyes and put the book back on the shelf. "Is Shouko back yet? I asked her for some beddings."

"She hasn't come back," Sei said. "And from the looks of it, I think you'd have to wait until morning. It IS 1 a.m., so just tuck in for the night, okay?" she continued, smiling at me.

"No, it's okay," I said. "I'll sleep on the floor."

"No way am I going to let you do that!" Sei started, pulling herself up. "Just lie down, and I'll do the rest," she said, tipping me one of her patented winks.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I shot back. "Where are you going to sleep?"

"We-ell, you'll find out in the morning, won't you?" she said, smiling mischievously.

"Oh, dear God," I said, the last traces of sleep falling from my eyes. "Sei, what about that promise you made tonight?"

"What about it?" Sei purred mock-innocently. "I DID say I wouldn't do anything you won't like, right? And I'm pretty sure you'll like what I have in mind."

I felt my patience fray into tiny threads. I knew by now that she wasn't really going to do ANYTHING, but I found myself tiring of our comic routine. I picked up the book I was reading and leafed through to the page where I stopped. "This little game of ours is getting a little boring, quite frankly. Sei, why won't you be serious for once?" I asked, feeling really tired.

I thought I saw Sei's face change expression out of the corner of my eye. "Well, now that you put it that way, maybe I should be… for once."

And at that moment, Sei Satou cupped my chin in her hand and brushed her lips against mine.

-_Sei-_

Contrary to popular belief, no, I did not do it because I was thinking of my stupid little deal with Youko.

I didn't do it because I was just feeling horny, either.

I did it because something in Tomiko's tone of voice told me that if I let things go on the way they did, then I would end up stringing it along too far until I lost it all. Her friendship, her patience, and this feeling that I could sense was building up between us. All right, it could be just a case of wishful thinking, but damn it, at this point I was willing to risk it.

Truthfully, I couldn't help myself anymore. Call it a pitiful excuse, but something was pushing me to kiss her. It had been there for quite some time now, growing stronger with each passing day. I'd been fighting it all this time because I was afraid that if I did give in to it, I'd be completely shunned by the one person I wanted to be by my side the most.

But now I can admit it. I love her.

And now she knows it.

I was expecting a slap after this latest stunt, so I didn't pull away immediately. If this was going to be my last supper, so to speak, then I wanted to enjoy it. Call me selfish, but if Tomiko decided she didn't ever want to see me again, I'd…

Wait.

Was she kissing me back?

Oh, Lord.

I was going to say that if she never wanted to see me again, I'd at least have that memory of our kiss. Actually, if she said that she never wanted to see me again, I'd probably die a little—a lot—inside. And now I was finding it very hard to think, because she was kissing me.

This was probably just my imagination.

But…

We pulled away at the same time. Somehow she'd managed to get her arms around my neck. Mine were around her waist. We were pressed up against each other, both a little breathless, and her eyes were searching mine for answers.

Finally, she spoke. "Did you—"

"Mean it?" I completed, knowing what she wanted to ask. "Yeah. I do."

She blinked. "Oh."

I smiled. "No tricks this time, Tonkoneko."

Tomiko seemed uncertain. She averted her gaze, but didn't pull away from me. "So…what do you want to do next?"

I pressed my forehead against hers. "I want…well, I want this. I want us to be like this."

"Ah…" Tomiko suddenly looked apologetic, and I thought I heard her sigh. "Sei."

I waited. The silence was killing me. There was something in the way she said my name that didn't bode too well for me. My heart was doing overtime.

"Sei, I think I want this too…" she trailed off, biting her lip.

I groaned inwardly. Ah, this is going to be a rejection. "But…?" I prompted gently, feeling a little sick to my stomach.

Tomiko looked up at me. There was a sad smile on her face. "But there's something I need to do first. On my own."

I opened my mouth to give the usual 'Ah, it's okay, I kind of expected you didn't see me that way,' and so on and so forth when her words really hit me. I looked at her, a bit stunned, realizing that it wasn't a rejection.

Okay, so maybe it was a fifty percent rejection. The important thing was that there was hope. Tomiko was willing to give this a shot, but only after she'd sorted something out. I was curious and wanted to ask her what she had to do first, but I only nodded and said, "All right. You do what you have to do. I'll be here. I think you can trust me on that one."

Tomiko smiled, relieved. She pressed her forehead against mine and said, "Thank you."  
And then she did something completely unexpected. Before I could react, before I could say anything, before I could even blink, she closed in and planted a kiss on my cheek.

I was so dazed, she was asleep long before I snapped out of a semi-hypnotic state of self-imposed heavenly bliss.

It was a bit late when I woke up the next morning. My mind was a blank slate; it must have been the events of yesterday that caused me to feel so disjointed. I tried to put everything in order: first there was the meeting at the supermarket, then there was the impromptu party at my house, and then there was that conversation between me, Youko, and a smugly-grinning Eriko, and then there was…

I sat up, suddenly wide-awake. The kiss! I wondered if it had been a dream, because there was no sign of Tomiko anywhere in my room. She was gone.  
Had she gone back to her dorm already? I scrambled for my cellphone, feeling a panic attack coming on, and I don't really get those anymore. I wanted to know if she'd left because she had something important to do (something unrelated to that kiss) or if she'd left precisely because of that kiss (which was, quite frankly, a reason I couldn't handle).

After a couple of rings, she answered. "Sei?" she said, sounding a little surprised.

"Tomiko!" I exclaimed. "Why'd you leave so early? Where are you?"

There was a brief pause. And then she chuckled. "Baka," she chided. "I didn't leave. I'm downstairs in the kitchen, having breakfast. Sachiko and Yumi did leave, though; Sachiko said that they were expected back at their homes and that they were already a bit late."

I barely heard the part about Sachiko and Yumi-chan. I was so relieved. "I thought you'd already gone back home or something."

"Well, I didn't." I heard her laugh. "Come on, Shouko's saying you should come downstairs and save her the trouble of fetching you up there."

She hung up. I put my phone back down and started laughing. Yes, I am an idiot at times. I sighed, got dressed, and went downstairs to join Tomiko for breakfast.

At least she still sounded normal, even though she knew how I felt about her.

I suddenly grinned. This term was going to be an exciting one. True, it may not work out at all, but on the other hand there's a chance that they would.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Sakurabito

_('Sakurabito', literally 'cherry blossom- person', is an archaic Japanese term meaning 'beautiful person'. That's it for the explanation, now enjoy! - Sylvaene)_

_-Tomiko-_

_Heey. I was thinking, maybe we should talk. I'm at your school's gate. Teru._

I clamped my phone shut, and opened it again.

It was still there, blinking in my inbox. The address had changed, but the username remained pretty much the same.

Teru.

The world seemed to dissolve around me in a wash of afternoon light, filtering through the glass windows of the classroom. Something seemed to give my ankles wings as I slid off the table I was sitting on and made my way to the shoe lockers.

It had been a year since I met Sei at opening ceremony, and once more, the petals of hundreds of cherry blossoms carpeted the school's grounds as its season drew to a close. The opening ceremonies had come and gone, and there were new faces milling about, each betraying anticipation and a sense of determination to make this start the best. And though I was going into my second year at Lillian U, that feeling was definitely contagious.

It was going to be the best start of the school year, and I was going to take my destiny into my own hands this time.

I walked into the girls' bathroom at the time Rizu did. She took in my unusually tidy hair, straightened clothes and lifted a single eyebrow.

"You're dolled up," she commented.

I brightened. "It's nothing, really. I just wanted to try out a different look is all."

The eyebrow remained raised. "So… this would have absolutely nothing to do with that mail you got at lunchtime, right?"

I looked Rizu in the eye and tried to keep from grinning. "You know what, Rizu? Maybe it _is _about the mail. I've been thinking… I might not be sure if it will work out, but I want to give it another chance this time."

She gave me a dubious look and went into one of the stalls, her now waist-length black hair swinging behind her. I was about to leave when Sei walked into the bathroom.

The fox looked at me carefully, and raised an eyebrow as well. What WAS it with these people?

"Ho, you're prettied up today," she remarked. She had on a dark brown newsboy's hat made of corduroy, and she tipped it jauntily in my direction as she walked in. "Could it be that I've got a rival so soon?" she said with a grin and a wink.

I looked at her incredulously. "Rival? What are you talking about?" I felt something catch in my throat as I tried to talk my way out of it. Some spot I was in now.

She made a face, her grey eyes twinkling. "Tsk tsk. Forgotten about all about my affections already? So cruel, Tonkoneko." She grinned, then snapped her fingers. "Ah, I get it, you want to take me out on a date! Well, I can't possibly let all that prettying-up go to waste now, can I?"

I somehow couldn't manage to meet her eyes. Memories of what transpired during the New Year's party flooded my mind, unbidden, and right now, unwanted. Keeping my eyes firmly fixed on the floor, I muttered something unintelligible even to myself and ran out the door.

_-Sei-_

I scratched my head as Tomiko practically bolted clear out of the bathroom. I wondered if I said anything to make her panic like that, or if it was just my taste in headgear. Tomiko's complained about my clothes before. Still, seeing her with her hair neat and well-kept, her clothes ninety-nine percent wrinkle free and her sneakers unscuffed made me wonder. It also kind of made me hope that, hey, maybe she wanted to go out with me looking like she did on the Cinderella date.

Her reaction, however, was puzzling and a little…well, a little worrying. It was as if she didn't want to or couldn't bear to be around me. But why? I had come clean that night we had a party at my house and told her—demonstrated, really—what I felt, and she hadn't found anything to complain about. In fact, hadn't she said something about _wanting_ the same thing I wanted?

And yet there she was, looking as though she'd actually taken pains to look nice today but refusing to look me in the eye once more. I couldn't even catch her excuse as to why she had to leave in such a hurry.

A sick feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. Somehow I knew that my little joke—about me having a rival—may not have been accurate, but was probably the closest thing to it right now.

Someone in one of the cubicles delicately cleared her throat. "Aren't you going to run after her?"

"Rizu?"

"Well, who else could it be? Aren't you going to run after her?" she repeated the question.

I wasn't in the mood to pretend. "I want to. But something tells me I don't have the right to." I was having a hard time controlling my anger. I felt betrayed. "I thought I did, but…"

A cubicle door swung open and Rizu walked out. She looked at me once, then focused her attention on her reflection and started fixing her hair. "Hmm…"

I glanced at her. "What?"

"Hmm?"

"You know something, don't you?"

Rizu was checking for non-existent dirt on her face. "Yes, I do. There's one thing I want you to verify though."

"What's that?"

Rizu opened the faucet and began washing her hands. "That little joke you made about you having a rival…is there actual basis for that joke? Sei?"

I thought about what she meant by that question. It wasn't hard. Rizu was Tomiko's closest friend in Lillian, and she probably knew about the kiss. She was asking me if had been _serious_ about that kiss. Because if I wasn't, then of course I would have no right to ask about a 'rival', and my earlier joke would have been just that. A joke.

"Yes," I said, unable to keep some of the bitterness I was feeling out of my voice. "At least I thought so." I took off my hat and ran my fingers through my hair, frustrated. "Now I'm not sure what to think. Guess it was a bad move after all."

Rizu turned off the water and started flapping her hands to dry them. "Tomiko got a message on her cellphone from her ex," she stated bluntly. "They're meeting in front of school."

I looked right at her. "When?"

She snorted. "In a few minutes. Why Tomiko would actually want to after the kind of break-up they went through, I don't know."

I felt like someone had just punched me right in the stomach. Tomiko had never talked about her ex. She never mentioned it, not even once.

_Ferris Wheel._

The memory of that moment from the Cinderella date suddenly surfaced. Judging by how sad Tomiko had looked then, I _knew_ that she would do anything to try and set what she thought had gone wrong. Even if it meant disregarding what happened that New Year's night.

For a few horrible seconds, I was frozen. I had no idea what to do next. I was going to lose someone without even having had a real chance to show her how much I loved her.

I became aware of a pair of brown eyes on me, and turned to see Rizu giving me a direct, challenging look. "Aren't you going to run after her?" she asked, for the third time.

Something in her tone of voice slapped me back to my senses.

Of course I was going to run after Tomiko.

It was what I'd been doing all this time.

And there was no reason for me to stop.

_Especially not now_.

I smirked at Rizu and, with a sweeping flourish of my hat, gave her a low bow. "I'll see you later, little lady," I said, tossing the cap to her.

She caught it and smirked back. "This ratty thing is your way of saying 'thank you'? Get your butt out of here, Satou Sei."

I nodded to her, then turned and ran out the door and after Tomiko.

-_Tomiko-_

For some reason I couldn't explain, I felt the rhythm of the day reset on an uneven beat. I ran out of that bathroom as fast as my feet could carry me. It was the only thing I could do, though some part of me was screaming, screaming for me to run right back, back to Sei and her little dinky hat. I ignored my brain and left my feet to take me where they wanted.

I ran down the tree-lined path leading to the gates, perhaps jostling a few students on my way there; I couldn't really tell. I felt my heart practically flutter up my throat as I caught sight of a familiar figure beyond the school's low-hedged walls. The same medium-length black hair tied in that familiar loose ponytail, the same glasses, the same stance. Teru was everything I remembered she was: my _sakurabito._ It was as if the cherry blossoms were waving, winking at me, urging me to walk faster, towards the gate.

She met my gaze as I reached the wrought-iron gates of Lillian U, smiling gently, and opened her folded arms to hold my hands. She peered through her small wire frames at me, her hazel eyes twinkling.

"Hey, you," she chuckled, wrapping me up in a hug. She was a good head taller than I was, and my head fit snugly against her chest as she drew me in. I drank in the faint smell of fresh cologne that always surrounded her, familiar and tugging at my heartstrings. "So, how's my Tonko-chan? Has university life been treating you well?" She cradled my face in her hands and looked at me, a little half-smile playing on her lips. "It has, I can see."

It was a bit too much, and I found myself averting my gaze. She was here, and we were going to talk, so I should be happy… right?

Then why was that small screaming part of me growing by the second?

I quickly took her hands and put them down at her sides, stepping back as I did so.

"I'm doing okay," I said, smiling nervously. "How was your first year in college?"

Teru looked at me thoughtfully, pushing her glasses up on her nose. "Not too bad, I guess, though it's supposedly a rat race at med school." She adjusted her sling bag and gave me a wink. "What say we talk more about it somewhere else? Isn't your dorm room just a stone's throw away? You could make me some of your coffee."

"Oh, uh, about that…" For some odd reason, I was suddenly very jumpy. "I brought the siphon with me to university." Oh, Buddha, what was I saying? Was I stalling for time?

She chuckled. "Then that's very good! Then you can use it to make _me_ some coffee for a change, ne?" She took my hand and cradled it gently in both of hers. "Listen, I don't know if you've noticed, but my university is just a train station away." She lifted my hand to her lips and lightly kissed them. "This isn't my first time here, I'm afraid."

I blinked. "Wha-what do you mean?"

Teru smiled wanly. "I've been coming back here for quite a while, hoping to catch you coming home from class," she replied.

That sent shivers down my spine, but whether or not that was the good kind eluded me. "Oh?" I asked, wriggling out of her grasp. "Why didn't you just send me a message then?"

"But that would ruin the fun," a voice from behind us said. Turning around, I saw a girl with catlike eyes, rosebud lips and a fringe of jet bangs lining her little oval face. Her dark Lillian uniform hung on her lithe frame in a flattering, devil-may-care fashion. Her beauty was painstakingly contrived, yet it seemed like something that came naturally from her.

"Mayo-chan," Teru said, looking only half-surprised. "I thought you wouldn't be out until much later."

The way Teruko said the girl's name made my heart sink to the floor. I was absolutely certain she wasn't just a friend or an acquaintance. Mayo walked towards us then, and I found myself bereft of words. My mind was full of questions, and a good number of them had nothing to do with what was happening now. My thoughts flew back to Sei, and I found myself plunged into the pain of the truth. Teruko wanted me back in her life, but I had no idea that I was going to share that place in her heart with this girl.

Mayo's voice interrupted my thoughts. Her voice was young and clear, ringing like a small bell.

"That's okay, I suppose," she mused. "I could always share you, Teru-chan." She strung her arm around Teruko's and hung onto it like it was her lifeline. Teruko shrugged it off, looking a little annoyed.

I had finally found my voice, but it had seemed that I had found something else with it: a fresh sense of betrayal, not so much of my old relationship as the torch I still carried for the one I used to love. I realized then that how I kept my hair, why I crash-dieted within an inch of my life, everything about myself except a huge part of my painting was just in preparation for this moment. I had unconsciously resolved from the moment I walked away from her and that Ferris Wheel that I'd make myself a person worthy of Teruko, worthy of her attentions.

And right now, everything revealed itself as a sham that carried me as strongly to itself then as it was washing me away now.

Mayo looked a little miffed for a split second, but her recovery time was pretty quick. She planted a tiny kiss on Teruko's cheek (dangerously close to the corner of her lips) and walked off, her couture satchel swinging from her thin shoulders.

"I'll see you at home, Teru-chan," she said, casting a predatory eye at me. "I'll get dinner—and maybe some dessert—ready." Teruko waved her off, her eyes catching mine. I must have looked quite scary, because she had gone from being annoyed to being clumsily reassuring in a blink of an eye. I guess she has a tendency to panic when she senses she's done something wrong—a tendency a doctor shouldn't have.

"I hope you don't mean to be a surgeon," I cracked.

"I don't. I mean—,"

I turned on my heel. I didn't want her to think I was crying over _her._ "Goodbye, Teruko."

I was caught off-balance when she yanked me by the arm, her lips taking mine forcibly, prying them open and thrusting her tongue in.

"I still love you, Tomiko," she murmured. I felt my anger well up in me, and tasted my salty tears merge with the bile in my throat.

I shut my eyes and let my old high school softball swing get her in the cheek.

_Sei_

I didn't know how fast I was going until I felt a stitch in my side and wildfire spreading in my lungs. The front gates weren't that far-off, but I knew that every second counted. I kept bumping into people as I ran, and I was too caught up in an unreasonable state of panic to stop and apologize. The faster I tried to go, the slower things seemed to get. My brain felt like it was being swept away by a hurricane. Why was I freaking out like this? Tomiko wasn't even mine, technically or otherwise, and there was but a faint promise holding the possibility of 'us' together, a promise that could disappear the moment she met up with that old flame of hers. An inner me chuckled wryly; when had Tomiko come to mean this much anyway? I doubted I could pinpoint the exact moment in time, and I knew I couldn't even begin to explain the 'why'.

Finally, _finally_, I reached the gates.

That was when I saw this tall, thin girl with glasses reach out and—rather roughly—pulled Tomiko to her and kissed her smack on the lips.

It's bad to stop suddenly after a brisk run, but that's exactly what I did. I barely felt my feet jarring against the pavement, much less the vibrations thrumming up my calves. Everything seemed to fall away from me then; the students milling around me, the school buildings, the trees that dotted the grounds. Even sound became nonexistent—there was just this loud, annoying buzzing in my ears. My stomach fell to my sneakers. I've never really passed out before, but I supposed this was pretty close to the feeling. Whatever it was that I thought I might have had going with Tomiko was over before it even started.

And then, as I was trying desperately to summon the courage to walk away, Tomiko wrenched herself out of the girl's forceful kiss, pulled back, and slapped her resoundingly across the face. In another second, Tomiko was off and running, in the direction of her dorm, leaving the bespectacled girl standing utterly confounded right in front of the gates, just a few feet ahead of me.

I'd never really gone bungee jumping before, but I was pretty sure I already knew what it would feel like. I was feeling it at that moment. From nearly hitting rock-bottom to soaring swiftly back up through the air, and landing precisely on my feet with all the poise and dignity of a mountain cat.

And, as I regarded Tomiko's ex-girlfriend, with all of a wild cat's ferocity as well.

But Tomiko's well-being weighed more on my mind. I cast her ex a dirty look, then started off after Tomiko.

I hadn't gone very far, however, when I heard her call to me. "Her friend, am I right?"

I stopped. My temper, which had been dormant for such a long time, was starting to rise. And it was rising fast. I looked over my shoulder at her, noting that her glasses were askew. "What's it to you?" I asked.

The girl looked me up and down appraisingly. "Are you gonna chase after her?"

I'd been chasing after her from the moment I first saw her, but I wasn't about to let this arrogant, two-timing jerk know all about that. "You gonna stand there and ask me all these inane questions? Beat it." I turned around.

That hated voice floated over to me nonetheless. "She'll get over it. And she'll come running. Back to me."

I felt my hands clench into fists, even though I don't remember telling them to do so. My teeth were grating against each other. If this idiot didn't stop babbling…

"But from one friend to another…" the girl snickered a bit, "don't hold your breath."

I took in a deep breath. Then I turned back and walked up to her. "For one thing, whoever you are," I said slowly as I came close, "I—am—not—your—friend." I calmly reached up and removed her glasses, much to her surprise. "For another, I never hit anyone who wears glasses. So…" I carefully put her glasses in her front pocket, patted it for good measure, then drew back and sent my fist directly into her face.

She hadn't seen that one coming. I felt a profound sense of satisfaction seeing her head snap back and her butt coming into contact with the ground. She looked positively stunned. I glared at her and said, "Don't ever let me catch you lurking around here again. And if you do anything to Tomiko that she doesn't like, I won't stop at hitting just your nose."

I'd wasted enough time on this pathetic loser. I turned around and started running after Tomiko, who was well out of sight by now. Who knew what she was doing in her dorm? I hoped fervently she wasn't doing anything stupid.

I heard, faintly, someone shouting behind me, and barely made out the words. "I'm still the one she loves!"

_In your dreams_, I thought grimly. I knew Tomiko well enough by now, and I knew somehow that anything she had with this girl, any hope, any good regard, all of it was gone.

I reached the door to Tomiko's dorm. I hesitated a moment, wondering what to say, or if I should even be there at all. After all, this was, technically, none of my business. Tomiko hadn't even seen me punch her ex. Ooh, that was going to be some story to tell, and I didn't know how she'd react.

From behind the door came faint, but frantic, snipping sounds.

I frowned. What on earth was she _doing_?

Hesitation gave way to sudden alarm. I tried the doorknob and it turned; the door swung open but snagged on something on the floor. I looked down and saw one of Tomiko's _manga_—one of the few that she handled with extreme care—torn hopelessly to shreds. I picked it up, my worry for her increasing tenfold. Tomiko would _never_ have done this to her prized comic book on any bad day.

"Tomiko?" I ventured, stepping inside. There was no answer, but I half-expected that.

What I didn't expect was the sight that greeted me once I spotted her.

Her dorm looked all right; more or less in one piece, save for a few things. There were several more _manga_ lying around on the floor, ripped up and strewn carelessly, perhaps angrily, around. The sliding door that separated the kitchen from the living room was also thrown wide open, revealing Tomiko's beloved siphon, also on the floor and smashed into bits. But the worst part was sitting right in the middle of the dorm. Tomiko, tears streaming down her face, had taken a large pair of scissors to her hair and was hacking away at it like there was no tomorrow.

I was frozen in abject horror for one moment, and then I leaped towards her. Dropping down to my knees in front of her, I grabbed at the scissors and tried to wrench it out of her hand.

She fought me, keeping a steel grip on the damn thing and still reaching for more hair to cut. Fool girl would probably hack all of it off, given half a chance, so I redoubled my efforts to get the scissors out of her hands. It must've looked pretty scary; I had one hand on the blades and the other on Tomiko, she had one hand on the scissor handles and the other one had let go of her hair to push at my face. One wrong move and we could end up gouging an eye. I was yelling at her to stop, but she was as good as deaf.

Finally, I managed to yank the scissors away from her. She made a desperate grab for it, but I wasn't going to let her do this to herself anymore. I pulled her into a tight embrace, praying she'd calm down soon. "Enough, Tomiko, enough…"

After what seemed like eternity, she stopped trying to wriggle out of my arms and settled for crying into my chest. I found I didn't have anything wise or comforting to say. Normally I was good at this sort of thing. I guess I was feeling too much of her pain. Since I was practically mute, I simply pulled her into a closer embrace, rocking her back and forth as if she were a five-year old kid who had fallen down. In a way, maybe she was. She'd held on to something, believing that it would somehow be real, only to find out in the end that it was all make-believe, like Santa Claus.

Well, then, I'd have to give her something else to believe in.

"It'll be okay," I said softly, hoping she could hear me. "It's not okay now, and it probably won't be okay tomorrow, but it _will_ be. I'm here. I don't know if that means anything to you, but I promised you I'd be your friend. You'll be okay, Tonkoneko, but you'll be okay for _you_, not for anyone else. I believe in you, and you're more than just someone's passing fancy, you hear me?"

We stayed that way for a while, sitting on our bums on the floor of her dorm, with me murmuring what I hoped were comforting words. And then I began to feel something—odd—about my right hand. It was hurting, a sharp kind of hurt. I glanced at it.

Holy crap, the bugger was bleeding.

I spared the scissors a withering look, and then I made a move to get up.

Suddenly, Tomiko grabbed me by the arms. "Don't go," she pleaded. She was still in tears.

I patted her on the head. "I just want to use the bathroom, is all. I'm not going anywhere else until you're all right again."

I never intended for her to see the gash on my palm, but she must've sensed that I wasn't going to the bathroom to relieve myself. She turned her head sooner than I expected, and her half-glazed eyes fell on my wound.

She let out a gasp and sat bolt upright. "What happened to you?"

You know those silly anime characters that get really big sweatdrops on their heads? Yeah. Felt like that. "Ah…well, I did wrench those scissors out of your hands, Tonkoneko…"

Tomiko looked at me, horrified. "Oh, Sei, I'm so sorry! Here," she scrambled to her feet and pulled me to mine, quickly but gently taking hold of my injured hand, "we have to clean that before we bandage it up. It'll get infected. Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

I opted not to answer that one. Instead, I allowed myself to be dragged along to the bathroom sink. With a brisk efficiency I wouldn't have expected under the circumstances, Tomiko opened the faucet and pushed my hand into the water. I winced, but the slight pain it caused was nothing compared to what came next; a good dousing of peroxide.

"Ow!" I yelped. "Itetetete…that hurts," I hissed at her, grimacing. It _really_ did.

"It'll hurt more if it gets infected, and that's the only way I know to clean it," Tomiko answered as she lifted my hand and examined it thoroughly. "Do you think it needs stitches?"

I hastily jerked my hand away and cradled it protectively. "It was just a pair of scissors, not a switchblade!"

She swatted my shoulder, her eyes flashing back to life. "I keep my scissors sharp, you know! Give me that hand, Satou Sei!"

I did, reluctantly so. She looked at it, frowning thoughtfully. "It's not as deep as I thought. It just looks angry. I guess bandages will do the trick."

I sincerely hoped so. I didn't want to have to go and get it stitched up.

Tomiko dragged out her first-aid kit, then led me back out into the living room. She ignored all the hacked-off hair around us and sat me down on her couch, then set to work on patching up my wound, stammering out apologies at every turn. I kept assuring her that it was all right. Tomiko was an emotional girl; it wasn't her fault. The only person she intended to hurt was herself. I glanced at the hair she had left on her head and sighed inwardly. All that lovely hair, gone to waste, and all because of some stupid ex-_koibito_ who didn't know a real treasure even when it was right in front of her nose.

It only took minutes for her to properly bandage up my hand. When she was done, she sat back and double-checked her work. "There. We just need to change it every so often to be sure it doesn't get infected or anything. Any time your bandages get dirty, you have to come to me, or get the school nurse to change it. Understand?"

I grinned. "I think I'd much rather come to you. You're prettier than the school nurse by a mile and a half."

She glared at me. "Sei, I'm serious!"

"So am I. For one thing, I think her eyes are crooked. Her teeth too. Pretty face, but she ought to go see an orthodontist, in my opinion."

For a moment, I thought she'd _really_ get mad at me for trying to sound flippant at such a time, but then her eyes softened, and she finally managed a tiny smile. "You're impossible, you know that?"

I smiled back. "So I've been told."

We kept quiet after that. Our eyes never stopped talking. It wasn't so much in words than it was in feelings, but I guess I could say we understood each other nonetheless. That was enough.

At least it would've been, if Rizu didn't suddenly traipse in through the door. I'd left it open, ajar even, and she must've been curious. Her head poked in and looked around. "Hey, are you guys o—aah!"

Her loud yelp of shock startled both me and Tomiko. I stood up and looked at Rizu. "It's…it's not what you think."

Rizu took in the shredded manga and Tomiko's messy locks scattered on the floor. "I don't know _what_ to think! What have you two been _doing_ in here? Why is your hair like that, Tomiko?"

Tomiko quickly explained everything that had transpired so far. She hadn't been in complete control of herself at certain parts, though, so I had to fill in the blanks at some point.

Rizu took it well, mostly, but she definitely thought the scissor-wrestling competition was in poor taste. Still, she only said, "Well, it's a good thing that's over and done with. I'd hate to have to bring two dead bodies to the morgue, you know."

I scratched my head in the most boyishly cute fashion I knew. "What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you'd be with Kei, like you usually are."

Rizu sniffed. "For your information, Sei, I came here 'cause I was worried about Tomiko." She looked me up and down. I self-consciously moved my hand behind my thigh, but she still might have seen the bandage. Rizu sniffed again and turned her attention to Tomiko. "All right, you silly girl, to the bathroom with you."

Tomiko looked a little apprehensive. "Why?"

"Because your hair is horrendous, and I'm going to fix it."

Tomiko very sheepishly retreated to the bathroom. Rizu followed, but stopped midway there. She turned around and threw something at me, which I caught with my left hand.

"Ho" I said, holding up my messenger cap. "Why are you returning this to me?"

Rizu shrugged. "It's too big for me. Besides, I don't really go for those things." Then she gave me a smile, a real one, and said, "Good job, Sei."

I grinned back.

"Oh, and don't get that infected," Rizu said as she turned and walked toward the bathroom.

Damn, that girl was _quick_.

It was nearly an hour later that Tomiko and Rizu finally exited the bathroom. Tomiko now sported a really cute cut; a little short but still girlish enough for her, and her bangs stylishly covered one eye. She caught my approving smile and turned a bit pink. "Don't say anything," she warned me.

"Even if it happens to be a compliment?" I asked, chuckling.

Tomiko made a face and self-consciously ran a hand through her hair. "Thanks for saving my dignity, Rizu," she said.

Rizu gave her an impish half-smile. "I saved your hair, Tomiko. Someone else saved your dignity."

Tomiko looked at me rather guiltily, but also with a huge measure of gratitude. I shrugged and glanced away, not really wanting to be the center of attention at the moment. I was still worried about her emotional state. My eyes happened to fall on the broken bits of the siphon on the kitchen floor.

"Ah, now _there's _a disaster," I said with an overdramatic sigh. "How are we going to make coffee now?"

Tomiko gave a little snort and refused to look at the siphon. "We'll survive on instant coffee."

"We can't survive on instant coffee," I protested.

"You happen to survive on your microwave. I don't see why you can't survive on hot water and 3-in-1 mixes."

"Coffee's a different matter entirely."

"Yeah," Rizu began dryly, "food can go to pot, but coffee can't, according to the great Satou Sei, poet, writer, and probably the unhealthiest creature to ever walk God's good earth."

Tomiko giggled. I gave Rizu a stern look. "Coffee's got enough antioxidants to prevent me from at least looking like the unhealthiest creature to ever walk God's good earth, and that'll only work if the coffee isn't instant. Besides, can you two actually _enjoy_ the taste of 3-in-1 coffee? Come on, let's go out and get Tomiko a new siphon."

Tomiko flatly refused. "No way. I don't have money for that. I'll have to save up."

I laughed. "Well, I have money for a new siphon, and since I account for…how much was that, Rizu?"

"Seventy percent," she said without batting an eyelash.

"Since I account for seventy percent of what you buy for food, I might as well make up for it by getting you a new siphon."

Tomiko looked at me, exasperated. "Sei, you're spoiling me. I broke the siphon; I should be the one buying myself a new siphon, not you!"

"But I account for seventy percent—"

"Of food, not kitchen appliances!"

"What model should we get?" I asked, looking at Rizu.

Rizu shrugged. "We should go out and look at the latest ones."

"You're right. Grab your things and let's go."

Tomiko was horrified. "Rizu!" she gasped.

Rizu grinned. "Sorry, but I can't survive on instant coffee either."

"Hypocrite," I said, laughing.

Rizu snorted. "Freeloader," she retaliated.

I smiled evilly. "Judas."

She slapped my shoulder, hard, which made me howl in pain. When I managed to recover, I looked at Tomiko inquiringly. "Well, are you coming? We do need you to pick out the siphon, you know."

Tomiko sighed. "I can't believe you guys are bullying me into this."

I put an arm comfortingly around her shoulders as we all headed out into the hallway. "Like I told you the first time we met, Tonkoneko, there's no bullying here." I winked. "Maybe just a little bit of dating."

Rizu made an indelicate sound, but surprisingly Tomiko laughed. I took that as a good sign, and with that we all went off to purchase a new siphon.

Couple of hours—and cups of coffee later—Tomiko's brand-new siphon was sitting in her kitchen, and she and I were sitting in her living room. Rizu had gone back to her own dorm after downing her second cup, claiming to have some things to do, one of which may be Kei. I started yakking about stuff off the top of my head in order to keep Tomiko from sliding back into possibly another manic fit, or into depression, which was something that might even be worse than what happened this afternoon.

"Well, it was your fault, really," she said after I recounted Yumi's fainting spell in the last days of my stay in Lillian High. "If you hadn't tricked her into believing that her Onee-sama had to perform for _your_ grand soeurs, then she wouldn't have pushed too hard."

I laughed. "Yumi's tough. Besides, everything I did was to make sure her bond with Sachiko would really cement itself."

Tomiko gave me a skeptical look. "Sure you'd say that, but I think you just wanted to laugh."

I grinned.

"You're horrible."

"I know. Don't you just love me?"

She laughed then, and I wondered if it was just my imagination, but it seemed a bit self-conscious. After her amusement died down, she smiled at me. "Thanks for the siphon."

Was that thank-you statement loaded with something else than simple gratitude, or was I just hoping too much? This was _not_ like me at all. "No problem." I smiled widely. "'Sides, I get to share the coffee."

Tomiko chuckled at that, but said nothing more. There was a moment's awkward silence, and then she averted her gaze. "Ano…"

I looked at her curiously. "Hmm?"

"Thanks…for everything."

I smiled. "Told you I'd be your friend, didn't I?"

She smiled back. I couldn't quite read the expression in her eyes. "Yeah. Thanks for that."

I was about to clear the table and make myself useful for once by washing the cups when she spoke again. "Um…Sei?"

I looked at her again. "Hai?"

This time the expression on her face was one of some uncertainty. "I…"

And of course my cellphone picked that exact moment to ring. I cursed. "Ah, dumb phone. Hold on a sec, Tonkoneko." I fished the phone out of my pocket and flipped it open. "Hai, Sei here."

"Ah, Sei?"

The voice was familiar. Too familiar. I thought I felt my heart stop. It _couldn't_ be.

"Kubou desu."

It was.

Shiori.


	10. Chapter 10:Beginnings

Chapter 10: Beginnings

(_Hello and Merry Christmas! Sorry I haven't updated in what seemed like an eon---real-life drama beckoned. -_-0 anyway, please enjoy this Christmas gift! And thanks for your support---it's been a great ride! Arigatou gozaimasu!--- Sylvaene)_

_-Tomiko-_

I watched Sei's expression change drastically as she continued to talk to the person on the phone, and realization hit me like ice cubes down my back. The person on the other end was Shiori. Sei didn't even need to tell me, as it was sure as the change in her aura. Her voice sounded awfully quiet, and like it came from the next universe. It was clear she wasn't in the dorm room anymore.

I was burning to know what Shiori had to say, but Sei wouldn't let on, not even a bit, as she sat right back down across from me. She had zapped back into this world as soon as she landed on the mats.

"That was Shiori," she had said, simply. "I don't know how she got my number. But she's in town for a few days, apparently." She surveyed her nails, every now and then picking at some offending speck of dirt. We resumed talking, and it was all I could do to keep myself from spiraling down. I barely even remembered what we had talked about that night—I was too preoccupied with how this turn of events would affect Sei—and incidentally, myself. I had constantly thought over what I could be feeling for her, if I had fallen in love; and now that

I had come to admit to myself things I kept out of my mind for a long time, things end up like this.

As I thought, the luxury of falling in love is the most expensive of all.

As she headed home for the night, Sei turned to me, looking me in the eyes.  
"She wants to meet at the Aloha Café tomorrow afternoon. She… wants to… talk," she explained, barely petering out the words, reading my face for some reaction she wanted. Her eyes were searching, confused, and maybe a tad embarrassed. I felt there was only one logical thing to say.

I smiled. "It's okay, Sei. She wouldn't go through the trouble of finding out your number if she didn't have something important to say," I replied, my heart sinking further into quicksand. "Go. And make sure you know exactly to which Aloha Café to go," I joked. "Good night."

I wanted to believe I saw Sei's face fall a bit, but I guess I saw nothing as I watched her cross the street to her little yellow Beetle. I laid in my bed that night, playing the day's events over and over in my head. Everything that stretched out from the first day we met snapped itself back in the course of just one day, like a rubber band stretched out over fingers: you held your breath nervously, just waiting for the sting. And now here it was. I felt no urge to sleep, though tears needed no urging.

Day quickly broke, and I found myself sleeping in as the sky had just turned blue. It was a Sunday, and I barely remembered Rizu sneaking into my room to snitch a few pieces of food from my cupboard. The faint smell of coffee lingered in the air as I saw her take the siphon's kettle to Kei's and her room. I don't know if she had figured out by now, but however things went, she had left me to my own dreams and devices. This was something I had to go through on my own. I stubbornly refused to move, though my body was hurting to throw off the covers and run all the way to the Aloha Café. I checked my watch. 10:00. It surely must have opened by now.

_-Sei-_

I've never been crazy about religion. Close friends can and will attest to that. But, as I stood just a couple feet away from the Aloha Café, just a couple of seconds away from that meeting with Shiori, I felt a sudden urge to drop down to my knees and start praying.

I had no idea why, though. Or for what.

My body was being unusually uncooperative that day. For some reason, my hands wouldn't stop shaking, and my stomach was having a sports festival. There were a lot of questions that I wanted to ask, a lot of things I wanted to say—some perhaps not so very kind or gracious—but as I tried to sort them all out in my head, they simply refused to solidify; the words adamantly backed out of my reach and any effort to construct the most basic of sentences that I would say to her all came down to pot.

What the hell was I so nervous about?

Tomiko had guessed that Shiori had something important to say to me, and I had no idea what that could be. Was that what was making me nervous? What would Shiori have to say that could possibly rattle me? Was I nervous because we were finally going to have some closure after all this time? Would I lose control of my emotions?

If I saw her now…would I want her again?

I checked my watch and saw that it was already twenty minutes past 10 am. Why was I hesitating? Shiori had been so important to me, and now that I have the opportunity to meet her, why did I feel scared?

I remembered how Tomiko had acted and dressed yesterday, when she knew she was going to see her ex. Was it the same for me now? Was I hoping for something? I frowned. Somehow it didn't exactly feel that way.

I took a deep breath. I was being stupid. It was time to face the past.

Mornings at the Café were neither busy nor idle. There were about a handful of people sitting at the tables and browsing through manga. The only sounds I heard were quiet chit-chat and the soft strains of some unknown Jpop song on the speakers. I smelled coffee and pastries. Everything was at its usual, until I saw her.

I wondered, a tad belatedly, how I could've possibly not seen her right away. The severe black and white habit should've stood out among the more colorfully-dressed patrons. She sat not too far away, in a small booth by the window, with no one else occupying the tables around it. And Shiori was looking right at me.

Our gazes connected, and I swear that the world stopped for an eternity. Sight and sound focused on just that one person, sitting at that booth, with the sunlight streaming in. In that moment, in that uncertain moment, what had eluded me since the day we parted ways finally came to me, even more strongly than it had when she and I had been together. I knew what peace felt like once again.

Then the moment passed, and I was aware of everything again.

I made my way over. For some reason, I felt less scared, less confused, and more certain. Of what, well, that was what I wasn't certain about, only that I felt more reassured. With each step I took closer to her, misgivings and old hurts fell away from me, and when I was finally at the table I felt like I could sprout wings and fly.

We looked at each other again, and I felt the connection between us. It hadn't disappeared, we were still reading each other like old, familiar books we would never throw away. And I knew then that Shiori was happy, truly happy, with herself and with the path, the life she'd chosen. And because she was happy, I was happy. Her decision to leave the little world we had created for ourselves in highschool was the right one. I knew it now.

Apparently, she realized it, too, because she smiled. It was her smile, that beautiful smile that I never forgot. "Gokigenyo, Sei."

I think I actually grinned at that. "Old habits die hard, eh, Shiori?" I asked as I slid into the seat opposite her.

She giggled. "They do, don't they?" Her eyes were warm. "Hello."

I smiled. "Hello."

Then there was an awkward pause. It wasn't a bad awkward pause, I think. A lot of things had happened, years had passed, and there were so many stories to tell. One wondered where to start. Finally, "How have you been?" she asked me. "You look like a normal college student."

"That's because I am a college student," I replied easily. "I don't know about the normal bit, though." We laughed, and it was my turn to ask, "And you? You look like that shy singing nun from 'Sister Act'."

She looked slightly self-conscious. "Is it really that severe, Sei? My habit, I mean."

"Penguins don't look severe," I told her, "unless you count the red-eyed ones with the wild feather hairdo."

"Sei!"

We laughed again. After that, we were off and running, so to speak. The gazillion stories we each had to share spilled out like a small waterfall into a babbling brook, and it really did feel like walking into a bright, sun-dappled forest with said waterfall and brook. It was almost surreal. I half-expected Bambi to trot out from behind a bookshelf and nuzzle Shiori for treats.

The hours passed but I scarcely noticed. Lunch came and went (we ordered, of course), and then the afternoon sped by. The sky was an unusual orange hue for that season, which was why I looked up and realized that it was going to be early evening soon.

The image of a girl with ice-blue eyes, a face that had been ever-present in my mind during that whole time Shiori and I talked, grew clearer and stronger.  
A lull in the conversation, and we looked at each other once again, both knowing that it was time to go. By now, we both knew the directions we would take. But Shiori was smiling, and so was I.

I knew what I wanted to ask.

"Shiori," I began, looking directly into her eyes. "Why did you want to meet up? I don't believe it was just to catch up, though today has certainly been fun."

She didn't answer at first, and her eyes never wavered from mine. Finally, she spoke, and she sounded a bit sad. "I want to apologize…for the way I disappeared. From your life."

I said nothing. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "It was not right of me to have said goodbye through a letter. I should have told you face-to-face. But, as I explained in writing to you before, I knew that I wouldn't have had the strength to say goodbye if I saw your face." Her eyes revealed guilt. "It was a terrible thing to do to you, and for such a selfish reason. Also, I…I didn't want to see your face if you decided to hate me for wanting to leave you. I couldn't bear it."

She paused. "I am not sorry for having chosen to follow my dream. I am not sorry for having chosen this path. But, Sei, I am so truly sorry for having hurt you, when you deserve the complete opposite of pain." She looked at me then, her smile slipping, and bowed her head. She looked like she might cry.

I sighed. "It's okay."

Shiori looked up at me, surprised.

I grinned. "Really. I'm not just saying it. You made the right decision. Being separated like that…from you…was painful. But I think things turned out all right. If that night didn't happen…if you had gone along with my crazy scheme…we probably wouldn't be happy. I'd still be needing you, and you would still be chasing a dream." I held up a hand. "I'm not saying that I never loved you or anything like that. I did. I really, honestly did, and I still do, but…I think I needed you more than I actually loved you. You were everything to me because I needed you, I needed someone to accept me for who I was and not try to change me or make me conform to what society says I should be." I sighed again. "In a way, I guess I used you. And I'm not proud of that. So I should apologize, too, and I'm sorry if I made things hard for you back then."

"Oh, Sei," Shiori said, and her smile appeared again. "You're not a user; you've never used anyone, and you didn't use me. We met each other for a reason. I can't quite name it, and I'm not sure we'll ever be able to explain it to ourselves, but we were brought together to be something for each other. When that need was over, it was time to part ways and time to share our new selves with other people." There were nearly-invisible tears in her eyes, but I think she was just glad that I didn't hate her. "And Sei, I have never regretted having met you."

That statement made me feel happy. I know she said as much before, but hearing it again and knowing for certain that it was true was something I'd treasure for the rest of my life.

"Thanks. I've never regretted having met you, too."

Of course we still loved each other. But it was not the self-centered love I must have felt back then, it was not the sympathetic kind of love she must have had back then as well. Now that we didn't need each other as desperately as we did back then, the love we had was a love shared between good friends. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less.

On our way out of the café, I stopped by the counter and ordered two coffees to go. Shiori looked at me curiously for a moment, and then an understanding smile lit up her features. I felt comfortable enough with her to give her what most people might consider a lewd wink. She laughed.

"So, Sister Mary Clarence," I said as we exited into the street, "want me to walk you to the train station?"

She opened her mouth to answer but nothing came out. I laughed. "Hey, it's not like you'd give me another letter! Or is it?" I added, grinning cheekily.

Shiori laughed. "Sei will always be Sei," she said. Her eyes grew serious then. "I saw it in your eyes when you walked into the café this morning. I'm very glad that you're happy."

Even nuns still had female intuition. I shrugged and smiled. "Thanks. I'll be happy whatever the results may be."

Shiori cocked her head to one side. "Oh? You mean…she hasn't given you an answer yet?"

"She did. 'Lemme think about it'."

She gave me a mildly disapproving look and clucked her tongue. "My, my, Sei. Have you lost your touch?"

Oh, my grandma's knickers, was Shiori making fun of me? I threw back my head and laughed, and soon she was laughing too. We were both going to get a bad case of gas later on.  
We hugged each other goodbye. It wasn't the last time we'd be seeing each other, certainly, and so neither of us hung on like drowning kids trying to cling to a rock. Shiori and I turned to go, she towards the station, I towards the other end of the street.

"By the way," I said suddenly, remembering something. I turned around, and so did she. "how'd you get my number?"

Without missing a beat she smiled sweetly and pointed at the sky. "God told me."

I stared at her for a long, long time, my mouth hanging open. Finally she gave in and laughed. "Silly. I rang the school and they gave me the numbers of your old friends, the old Roses. Youko-san gave me your number."

That damn meddler! I grinned. "Ah…you know, I wish it'd just been God instead."

Shiori smiled and nodded. "In a way, Sei, it was."

And with that, she turned and walked away.

I looked after her for a while. The habit really did suit her. And this 'me', this Sei that I was right now, old and new and everything in between, this suited me. I knew where I had to be, and who I longed to see.

I turned and headed home, and home had the color of warm auburn and cool blue.

_-Tomiko-  
_

I was having a dream. A nice dream.

In my dream Sei was in my dorm room, puttering about, with steaming cups of coffee. It seemed she had come home from Aloha Café. The Sei in my mind's eye set down the paper cups on the table and started tidying up the stack of dishes that had piled up unnoticed in the little sink, humming a happy little tune I recognized as one of my favorite bands' songs. She snuck a little glance at me and smiled, the kind of smile you'd give someone you loved. I smiled back, though I knew my tears had started leaking.

This Sei suddenly rushed to where I lay, her face a maze of worry. "Hey, what happened? Did Terrorko come back? Want me to beat the crap out of her?" She cupped my face in her warm hands, and that was when it all clicked into place: She WAS here.

Sei pulled away an inch and looked me over. Her eyes widened slightly and she looked even more worried than when she started. "What the heck have you been up to?"

I was incredulous, and it felt like my heart stopped, and I barely managed to choke out the words. "Why… why are you here?"

Sei's lip curled up in a crooked grin, looking mock-indignant. "Why are you asking me that? I practically LIVE here. And I bought you some coffee from Aloha, too." She made little disapproving clucking sounds as she pulled out some wipes from the drawer and started wiping my tear- and ice cream- stained face.

There were too many questions raging through my head, all of them clamoring for answers. I picked out the most pressing. "Shiori… ?"

Sei didn't look up from wiping my chin, cradling my face with her other hand. She smiled gently. "Shiori? She's on her way back to the convent." Through my eyelashes I thought I saw her pout. "Felt like talking to Sister Mary Clarence." Sei laughed, taking a sip from her coffee and handing me mine. "I thought she'd burst into song at any moment."

Eh? "It felt like talking to Whoopi Goldberg?"

Sei met my gaze for a moment, then threw her head back and laughed. "I'm confusing my nuns. Who's the shy one who couldn't sing at first?"

Nothing really came to mind except the here and now, though I loved the movie. "I don't remember." I didn't really understand anything. What was she doing here? Why wasn't she at the train station, with Shiori?

"Anyway, we both had to be getting home, so we said our goodbyes and here I am," she continued, spreading her arms. Peering into the tub on my lap, she asked, "What ice cream's that?"

I couldn't think past the last thing she said, so I just stared at her incredulously. All the questions I had for her just seemed to melt away one by one. Slowly.

"Home… ?"

She didn't seem to need an answer, since she was looking at the tub's lid with great interest. At Lawson's today they had a special on ice cream, though later on I figured out why they had to put the ice cream on sale.

"Lobster? Whoa, that's different," Sei let out a low whistle. "Tomiko, I know you've got strange taste, but that's kind of hard core, isn't it?"

I felt an all-too-familiar heat build up behind my eyes, and I had to blink several times to get the tears out of there, but to no avail. They plopped into the open tub, making little pools in the snow-white peaks of unfinished ice cream.

"Sei…"

Her grey eyes flashed in alarm, and before I knew it, I was wrapped up in those arms, those strong, slender arms. They filled me up with warmth, and love, and somehow I couldn't stop the tears anymore. Her fingers ran through my hair, and I just… well, I just started sobbing.

There were traces of panic in the voice that murmured in my ear. "What's wrong now? Really, did something happen?" she said, rocking me back and forth gently. "Tell me."

I sought refuge in Sei's warm chest, barely managing to speak coherently. "I thought… that if you saw Shiori… that if… you saw her…"

Sei stopped rocking and finished my sentence. "That if I saw her I'd rekindle our lost love?" she asked, and I could sense that she had her little crooked smile she'd reserve for her little jokes. I found myself wanting to chew her out for making fun of the situation—I had been crying buckets since this morning, after all—making me feel really, really pathetic.

I found that I could only nod.

Sei chuckled softly, and I could feel her breath ruffle the top of my head.

"She's happy with her life now, and I'm happy with mine," she murmured. "You know how I feel about you, and if you know me at all, you know I'm staying right here."

I wanted to answer, and I felt her pause a bit to see how I would react, but I could say nothing. I had cried so much any peep out of me sounded like a whimper. Sei pulled me closer to her and continued. "When I said we both had to go home, I meant exactly that."

We were silent for quite a bit of time. I felt my heart tone down its palpitations. Being with her felt so right, and for a minute I thought that it would be a good time to say something.  
"I thought you'd changed your mind when you agreed…" I started, the last of my whiny voice almost gone. "I told myself I was going to support you no matter what you did, but it hurt," I said. "It really did."

Sei's rhythmic rocking stopped. And her whole body went still.

"Why… why did it hurt you?" she asked, her voice nearly a whisper.

I felt a slow warmth creeping from my spine, up my neck to blossom on my face. "Can't you tell?"

I couldn't meet her eyes then, not even when she pulled away to look at me.

"Are you saying… what I HOPE you're saying, Tonkoneko?" she asked.

Her grip on my shoulders was steady, gentle yet firm.

"…Hope?" I tried.

"You know what I've been hoping for."

It took the last of my courage to drain my embarrassment.

"… And what if it were that?"

I could feel her eyes traveling over my face, and the silence was weighing down, like a heavy cloud settling on both of us.

"Please, _please _say it, Tomiko. I want to hear it from you," Sei said. Her voice was surprisingly holding steady, but it had a pleading note that made mine tremble when I answered.

"_Ai… Aishiteru to omou._ (I think I love you.)"

I looked at her for some sort of reassurance, and found it in the steady, strong way she held onto my shoulders.

"Say that again."

Her eyes were locked onto mine now, those eyes the colour of December rain. Those eyes that didn't deserve any amount of uncertainty I blurted out with my supposedly 'grand' declaration of love. I pulled myself up a bit, wiped the tears away from my eyes and looked deeply, lovingly, into those rain-colored eyes.

"I'm sure I love you, Satou Sei."

There, I had done it, I had confessed. I felt that whether or not she rejected me (and she had good reason to, at any rate), I wouldn't regret a thing. I loved her, that was the simple bit.

She pulled me into a tight embrace, one I couldn't—or wouldn't—get out of.

"I love you too, Harada Tomiko."

_-Sei-  
_

And she was mine.


End file.
